Labor force | Employer survey: The possibility of working in English has decreased in Finland

Foreigners the opportunity for employees to work in English in Finland has decreased by three percentage points since last year, according to a survey conducted by the personnel rental company Barona for employers.

The possibility of working in English has not expanded at all in three years.

The results are from Baronan International workforce and the future 2024 – from a study that surveyed the workforce situation and views of more than 500 private and public employers.

The study was carried out for the fourth time.

International according to the survey, 38 percent of all domestic employers use labor. That is four percentage points less than a year ago.

The percentage is 60 in the public sector and 36 in the private sector. In the public sector, the use of international labor increased by ten percentage points per year.

26 percent of employers, or a good quarter, say they intend to employ international labor in the next year.

While a year ago 41 percent of employers said their organization suffered from a labor shortage, now the figure was only 26 percent.

“Research clearly indicates that the labor market has momentarily changed in the other direction. The labor shortage has eased”, Barona’s director responsible for international labor Elina Koskela says.

“But at the same time, the question of eternity is that when Finland’s population ages and the birth rate decreases, we need help from foreign labor.”

About employers 26 percent said they intend to employ an international workforce in the next year. In the public sector, 52 percent of the respondents intend to do this.

Still, just under a third of the respondents estimate that the need for labor will increase in the next year.

The discussion about hiring an international workforce in those companies that do not yet employ international labor has also decreased.

Discussions had now taken place in 29 percent of employers. That is five percentage points less than last year.

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“When Finland needs long-term employees, the likely permanence of family members is better.”

Even more than three-quarters, or 76 percent, of international recruitments are aimed at performing work tasks.

According to Koskela, they have a legislative problem that makes family reunification through employment difficult.

In such employee occupations, the monthly salary is typically around two to three thousand euros.

The income limits for family reunification are so high that at that income level you cannot bring, for example, a family with two children to Finland. Family reunification

Reuniting families would not only be humane, but also in the employer’s interest, because in this way the employees would stay at work and in Finland longer, explains Koskela.

“When Finland needs long-term employees, the likely permanence of family members is better.”

According to Koskela, the situation of families should be considered first through employment, i.e. how to get spouses directly to work.

Now in Finland, there is an availability consideration in many employee occupations. It means that a work permit can only be obtained after the primary search for an employee in the EU or EEA area has not yielded results.

According to Koskela, spouses of work-based immigration should be exempted from availability consideration.

“For example, a welder’s spouse could get a job in a store, but now it’s difficult to get one because of the availability consideration in effect in many areas.”

Internationally workforce means foreign workforce and people of foreign background living in Finland who do not have fluent Finnish language skills.

The survey was carried out by Taloustutkimus Oy on Barona’s order.

The phone interviews were answered by 508 top decision-makers of companies and organizations or other persons responsible for recruitment.

The interviews were conducted in June–August.