Union plans industrial action over pay for personal assistants

Finland

After three months of negotiations on a new collective agreement for around 20000 personal assistants for disabled people, the JHL trade union is planning industrial action to put pressure on the Heta employers’ organisation. Targeted action is set for 25 and 31 May in the Helsinki area. Meanwhile a ban on additional work, overtime and shift changes will continue and the measures will also impact employers that are not organised by the Heta. JHL says that the pay and conditions of personal assistants are too low in relation to the demanding and wide-ranging nature of the work and are significantly worse than in the social and health care sector in general. This contributes to staffing shortages and high turnover.

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