Electricity, Equality, Precarious employment, Finland

Industrial action across the public and private sectors forced the government to revise its proposal to make it easier to dismiss workers in small companies. Unions were angry not just about the change but also about the fact that the government hadn't consulted unions and employers over the proposal. Following the union action there were tripartite discussions and the draft law now has no minimum threshold for dismissal rights. While most unions accept the specific change, the TEHY health union is still concerned about the overall balance of the bill and the impact on sectors dominated by

Public and private sector trade unions have suspended their industrial action in protest at planned changes to dismissal legislation following a commitment from the government to negotiate. The proposed changes would have made it easier to sack workers in small firms. Unions were objecting to the discriminatory provisions and to the failure to negotiate. The unions have only suspended the action and may restart it if the government doesn't undertake proper tripartite negotiations.

The JHL public services union stepped up its industrial action against proposed changes in dismissal rights with a 48-hour strike by around 10000 members who work in cleaning, property maintenance and food service sectors and sports and culture services. The strike is part of widespread trade union industrial action against plans to reduce dismissal protection for workers in small companies. The unions argue that not only is the change unfair, creating two-tier labour law but also threatens to impact women workers more than men. Trade unions are also angry that the government is trying to

The JHL public services union has warned that it will start a campaign of industrial action if the government goes ahead with plans to change the law on dismissal. The union leadership agreed that it would consider action short of a strike (such as an overtime ban) and even targeted strike action. The government is working on proposals that would make it easier to dismiss workers in companies with fewer than 20 employees which would cover 36% of all employees. JHL says that Finnish law is not restrictive by international standards and the government is pushing for the change even though there

The JHL public services union has called for more action to tackle the gender pay gap, with increased funding and a legislative initiative like the one agreed recently in Iceland. The union says that shops stewards should have broader rights to access payroll data that could help monitor trends in the pay gap. It also proposes measures in schools to address the continuing problem of specific occupations dominated by one gender, something that is getting worse in some occupations according to JHL. It also wants to see increased parental leave specifically for men.

The JHL public services union says that it will aim for a flat-rate rather than a percentage pay rise in the upcoming bargaining round as a step towards closing the pay gap between the low and high paid. Another priority for the union is more control for workers over working time and shift work, seen as crucial to improve well-being at work. JHL will also be looking at initiatives to address the cut in holiday bonus in the public sector and action on zero-hours contracts.

The government is going ahead with proposals for new working time legislation despite widespread criticism from the trade unions and even doubts expressed by employer organisations. The government wants to allow more flexibility in working time, including longer night and shift work and more local agreements on working time. The unions are worried that this is all about more worker flexibility and are concerned about the lack of provisions to ensure workers are protected. The unions also point out that this is a missed opportunity to tackle the spread of precarious work.

The JHL public services union and the SAK confederation have raised concerns about the government's approach to working time and possible changes to working time legislation. A government working group has come up with proposals that would allow for more local flexibility on working time while failing to put forward any concrete plans to regulate zero-hours contracts which currently affect 80000 workers in Finland. The unions argue that the proposals are more about flexibiity for employers than workers and that all workers should have a guaranteed minimum number of hours in their contracts.

(March 2017) Public services union JHL is calling for an extra pay increase for sectors dominated by women. The union chair Päivi Niemi-Laine said:"We need a separate round on top of the general increase. Women-dominated sectors have been kept in check and now we have to ensure that purchasing power remains strong in women-led fields." The union argues that action needs to be taken to address the persistent gender pay gap and that public salaries are being effectively cut by a decision to reduce holiday pay as part of the competitiveness deal negotiated last year.