JHL (29.05.2013- Heikki Jokinen) The Finnish government is planning to cut the budget of all research institutes under the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health by up to 30 million euro in 2015. This will affect the National Institute for Health and Welfare, the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority and the Social Insurance Institution Kela.
JHL oppose the planned cuts. "The government is cutting back on public research and this will mean job losses for hundreds of people", said JHL head of bargaining, Kristian Karrasch, as he took part in a demonstration against the cuts in front of the Finnish parliament. "If the decision is put into practice it will mean dismissals of hundreds of competent and dedicated employees and wreck high quality research."
Karrasch believes that the proposed cutbacks directed at neutral or impartial public research is deliberate. The government decision means that research into health and occupational health will now move into an unstable and scattered environment, he said.
He also wonders why such a rapid unplanned cut was being contemplated now, even though there were plans afoot to introduce major reforms regarding the research institutes. The proposed cuts also fly in the face of the state’s own personnel policy, which is officially based on joint consultation with employees and a commitment to avoid redundancies wherever possible.
"This kind of about-turn in employer policy is likely to have a long time effect on how the general public view state and state financed institutions as employers", Karrasch warned.
The shop stewards of the research institutions estimate that the planned cuts will lead to a loss of 600 jobs directly. And with the inevitable knock-on or commensurate effect of a fall off in external financing as a result, this could mean the loss of 1,000 jobs in all.
They are also keen to remind us that the same experts are involved in both research and practical work in a number of vital fields such as action against chemical threats, radiation safety and work against contagious diseases. The cuts would not only mean cuts in research but also affect expertise in many important areas.