Archive

JHL (27.03.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) JHL is taking a proactive role in the forthcoming Finnish parliamentary elections. It is pushing for very clear policy commitments from the new parliament and has been most active in stimulating political debate and other activities around the country. At least 126 JHL members are standing as candidates for the next parliament.

The JHL election campaign is centred round support for the welfare state and public services. Public services, taxation, working life and security are the four planks of this campaign.

JHL’s campaign goes to great lengths to drive home the fact that good and comprehensive public services serve to maintain a secure and unified society. And this is the backbone of competitive Finland and key when it comes to supporting business and employment.

Helsinki (17.03.2015 – Heikki Jokinen) The Finnish engineering company Wärtsilä has set up an internal trade union at its factory in Khopol, India to keep the genuine trade unions out, according to a recent report by the Finnish industry watchdog Finnwatch.

The mock trade union at the Wärtsilä factory (which is not officially registered as a trade union) in Khopol in the state of Maharastra is an internal union appointed by the factory. All regular workers are automatically members of it. It is, however, affiliated to the General Kamgar Union.

The factory directors told Finnwatch that they themselves had approached this union and invited it to come to the factory to avoid collective bargaining, typically held every 3 - 4 years. All discussions on pay are conducted on an individual basis. A Kamgar Union representative visits the factory only once a year.

Helsinki (03.03.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) The Finnish labour market system whereby trade unions, employers’ organisations and the government negotiate and agree on major issues receives a clear endorsement from the Finnish people.

This can be gauged from a new survey commissioned by the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions SAK. When asked whether you would vote, in the upcoming parliamentary elections on April 19th, for a candidate or party that would seek to weaken the existing tripartite system, 77 per cent answered no. Only 16 per cent said yes.

And a similar result was evident in another recent survey, commissioned by the union  Akavas Special Branches. In their survey the question was again whether tripartite agreements are important in labour market negotiations.

Helsinki (27.02.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) The unemployment rate is now 8.8 per cent, up slightly from 8.5 per cent in January 2014.

According to the latest employment figures of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy the number of unemployed people in Finland went up by 32,000 since January last year. There are now 359,600 registered unemployed persons in Finland.  

Unemployed young people aged 15 to 24 now total 47,900. This is some 5,000 more than that for the same time the year before.

And the number of those who have been unemployed for more than a year also rose. Now that figure is 101,500, which is 16,000 more than in January 2014. Unemployed people over 50 years of age total 131,700. That makes 11,200 more than one year ago.

Helsinki (19.02.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) Negotiations to reform the labour market bargaining system broke down after more than one year of work. The trade unions say the reason for this was the employers’ determination to focus solely on the issue of raising fines imposed for illegal strikes in spite of the many other issues on the table.

The national pact for employment and growth in September 2013 included a decision to set up a working group to assess the effectiveness and need for reform of the current bargaining system. Negotiations were held between trade union confederations and employers' organisations.

Helsinki (12.02.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) In certain Stora Enso factory units or operations pay is too low and the use of overtime can be excessive, says a new human rights report. This comprehensive assessment has been published by Stora Enso and was drafted by the Danish Institute for Human Rights.

The report looked at 43 human rights issue areas, covering labour rights, community impacts and controls for suppliers and business partners. It covered 93 units in 22 countries, as well as some joint operations in Brazil, Uruguay and Pakistan.

The report lists some problem areas. Working hours raised concern in some countries, where the number of staff has been reduced without new recruitments, like in Poland, Austria and Germany.

In China, Latvia and India pay was deemed too low to meet the cost of living. In particular entry level wages were a problem.

There are now three trade union confederations in Finland. SAK, the Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions is the largest one with a little over one million members. Just under half of the members of SAK-affiliated unions work in industry, about one third work in private services and one quarter work in the public sector. JHL is a member of SAK.

The second largest is the Finnish Confederation of Professionals STTK with 600,000 members and which mostly represents salaried employees. Akava, the Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland, has 585,000 highly educated members mainly in academic and managerial professions.

Helsinki (28.01.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) Zero-hours contracts should be outlawed. This is the wish expressed in a citizens’ initiative aimed at the Finnish parliament. If the initiative succeeds in collecting enough signatures, the Finnish Parliament will debate and deliberate on the matter.

Behind the initiative are young trade union activists. The Youth Secretary of the Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions SAK, Tatu Tuomela, says that the youth of SAK stands firmly behind the initiative.

”Zero-hours contracts and part-time work are a reality for many young workers”, he says.

Helsinki (20.1.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) A merger of trade union confederations now looks like becoming a reality. Delegates from 73 trade union met in Helsinki for a preparatory meeting. The meeting officially endorsed a move to establish a new union confederation in Finland.

Right now there are three trade union confederations in Finland. SAK, the Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions is a mainly blue-collar confederation with a little over one million members.

The second largest is the Finnish Confederation of Professionals STTK with 600,000 members which mostly represents salaried employees. Akava, the Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland, has 585,000 highly educated members mainly in academic and managerial professions.

JHL (16.01.2015 - Heikki Jokinen) The New Year promises to be an eventful one. This is according to Jarkko Eloranta, chairperson of the Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors JHL, who expects a big upheaval not only in the political arena, but also in the labour market and within the trade union movement. In certain respects we could be entering dangerous or unchartered waters, he adds.

Finland is about to see changes following parliamentary elections in April and the formation of a new government after the elections. Major reforms in the public sector and a new national wage agreement are expected.

The trade union movement is also beginning its own renewal by exploring the possibilities of forming a new comprehensive trade union confederation.