Archive

Helsinki (04.04.2011 - Juhani Artto) Under current Finnish legislation it is not possible for a trade union to sue an employer on behalf of its rank and file members or non-member individuals unless they have authorized the union to do so. Unions regard this as a serious injustice and demand new legislation - which would allow for what is presently impermissible - to be included in the next government programme. 

A new government will be formed and its programme approved in the weeks following the April 17 Parliamentary elections. Nowadays, the Finnish political system functions in such a way that it extremely difficult to carry out any essential reforms unless they have been included in the government programme.

Helsinki (21.03.2011 - Juhani Artto) Last year the number of work accidents increased by 5 per cent from 2009. In part, this unwanted development can be explained by the economic upswing that has meant more people in employment and a concomitant increase in overall working hours. 

However, there has also been a clear rise in accident frequency. In 2009 there were 28 accidents per one million working hours and in 2010 the vital statistical figure rose to 30. Thus, the accident frequency rose by 4 per cent.

Helsinki (08.03.2011 - Juhani Artto) A number of influential people have recently voiced alarm at how slowly the gender pay gap in Finland is being narrowed. Among them have been Leila Kostiainen, the Secretary General of the Finnish Confederation of Professionals STTK and Pentti Arajärvi, a professor who has, since 2009, headed the high-level group monitoring the implementation of the government's equal pay programme.

In 2006 the government and the central labour market organizations approved as their common goal to raise, by 2015, women's pay to 85 per cent of men's pay. Back then, in 2006, women earned, on average, 80.9 per cent of what men earned. 

Three years later - in 2009 - the gap was almost as wide. The women's euro had grown to 81.8 cents. The trend is not promising as the improvement over the last three years has been marginal to say the least. The gap has not narrowed more or even reached the same level as the early 2000's show when figures show that the women's euro was 82 cents.

Helsinki (28.02.2011 - Juhani Artto) In 2010 the effective retirement age rose to 60.4 years. It was the second year in a row of clear increase. Last year the jump upwards was even higher than expected by experts, no less than 0.6 years in one year.

The common goal of the Finnish government and labour market organizations is to raise the effective retirement by three years by 2025, from the 2008 level of 59.4 years.

Helsinki (23.02.2011 - Juhani Artto) In mid' February representatives of the largest union confederations* of the five Nordic countries and the official Chinese union organization ACFTU held a two-day seminar in Helsinki. Under discussion were major global issues, such as the economic crisis, unemployment, corporate social responsibility and collective bargaining. Also climate change, migration and international cooperation of the trade union movement were on the agenda.

"The world has changed and mutual dependence has grown. China now plays a central role in the global economy and this is something that the Nordic countries must also recognise", Lauri Lyly, the President of the host organization SAK stated in his opening speech.

Helsinki (22.02.2011 - Juhani Artto) The EU's plan to grab the right to control collective bargaining taking place in the Member States has been turned down outright by the Finnish trade union movement. This was the message of Mikko Mäenpää in his radio interview broadcasted on Monday morning by Yle. Mäenpää is the President of the Finnish Confederation of Professional STTK and a steering committee member of the European Trade Union Confederation ETUC.

He urges Finnish politicians to ensure that the EU will not intervene in working life matters at national level. Intervention on bargaining and pay levels would be steps in a wrong direction and would be opposed by the entire trade union movement, Mäenpää stresses.

Helsinki (18.02.2011 - Juhani Artto) The Service Union United PAM has declared a three-day strike, to begin on Wednesday 2 March, at the security company Securitas. The strike is in protest against the company's deliberate action, which the union claims is designed to complicate collective bargaining negotiations which are underway in the security industry. The previous collective agreement for the industry expired on 31 January 2011.

"The company has interrogated and put pressure on employees and shop stewards who have participated in industrial action. Securitas has also sent its employees a message where it urges them to leave PAM and to search for an alternative to it", explains Ann Selin, the President of PAM.

Helsinki (02.02.2011 - Juhani Artto) Last Thursday, three Finnish union confederations - SAK, STTK and Akava –in a joint effort- issued a statement condemning the arrests and maul-handling of protesters after the December presidential elections in Belarus. Among those arrested were union activists and a number of those arrested are still imprisoned, the confederations say.

They are now urging the EU to put pressure on Belarus to implement the ILO's recommendations on Belarus. The recommendations concern the implementation of ILO conventions on organizing and collective bargaining rights.

Helsinki (26.01.2011 - Juhani Artto) The Finnish-Swedish forest industry company Stora Enso announced on Tuesday that it will adhere to the decision made by the High Court in December 2010. It means that the company will finally pay performance bonuses to employees whose bonuses it had withheld because of their participation in strikes in 2005-2009. 

The dispute originates from spring 2006 when Stora Enso refused to pay performance bonuses to employees who had taken part in the industrial action organized by their trade unions. In December 2010 the High Court declared that the employer cannot contravene or place restrictions on the right to strike by limiting employees' right to performance bonuses because of their participation in strikes organized by trade unions.

Helsinki (17.01.2011 - Juhani Artto) The fight against the grey economy has taken an important step forward with the new initiatives being proposed by the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK. The powerful employer central organisation wants to make tax identification numbers mandatory for all persons working in the construction industry.

"Foreign workers would have to obtain their tax identification number from the tax office before being allowed onto construction sites in Finland. Tax identification numbers would allow the Finnish tax authorities to monitor how long each foreign worker is staying in Finland. This would clarify whether or not the person would have to pay taxes in Finland", EK says.