Strikes | February starts with strikes in the technology industry and the chemical industry – Finland’s most important wage negotiations have not yet found a solution

Three-day ones strikes in the tech industry and the chemical industry have started today. The strikes of the Teollisuusliitto, Ylemmet Tomiinnenket YTN and Ammatiliitto Pro are the first of this labor market round, but more strikes are on the way if a solution to the labor disputes has been reached.

The industrial union’s strike, which started at midnight, includes 50 workplaces in the technology industry, the basic chemical industry, the plastic product industry and the chemical product industry. About 7,200 people work in them. The strike includes, among other things, ABB Group’s offices, pharmaceutical company Orion’s factories and Outokumpu’s steel factory in Tornio.

YTN’s strike affects about a dozen companies in the technology industry, and about 5,000 senior employees are involved. Pro’s strike applies to white-collar workers in the technology industry, engineering and consulting. The strike in the engineering and consulting sector concerns the work that is done at a workplace within the scope of the strike in the technology industry.

Labor disputes were mediated on Tuesday, but no solution was reached.

New strikes are already looming next week

The employee organizations have tightened the screws on wage negotiations with new strike warnings, which the Confederation of Industry and YTN gave last on Tuesday.

Teollisuusliitto had previously filed a strike warning for 112 workplaces for the period 8-10. February. The strike warning filed on Tuesday covers 87 locations, and the three-day strikes would begin on February 15. Approximately 10,300 employees work in the locations that are subject to the latest strike warning.

The strike warning issued by YTN on Tuesday, on the other hand, applies to the period 15-17 February and would include approximately 20,000 senior employees.

Pro for white-collar workers also has several strike warnings in effect. Pro’s second strike in the technology industry and in the design and consulting industry would be on the 8th-10th. February and the third strike from 11 to 17 February. Pro has also announced a strike at separately named companies in the chemical industry from 13 to 15. February.

Mediation continues on Friday

The labor dispute between employers in the technology industry and Teollisuusliitto can be considered the most significant in Finland, because in other sectors the wage settlement of the technology industry is usually followed.

The national conciliator submitted a settlement proposal to the labor dispute last week, which was rejected by the Finnish Confederation of Industry on Friday. The employer side would have accepted the proposal.

The employee organizations have justified the accumulation of strike warnings by the fact that the employer side has not sufficiently taken into account the increased cost of living in salary solutions. The employer side, on the other hand, has said that the strikes are slowing down the negotiations.

CEO of employers in the technology industry Jarkko Ruohoniemi said on Tuesday evening in a press release that he does not see what could be won by strikes.

– Hopefully, the conditions for an agreement will be found soon, so that at least the strikes that threaten later can be avoided, Ruohoniemi said.

Conciliation between Teollisuusliitto and the employers’ organizations Technology Industry Employers and Chemical Industry continues on Friday. As for YTN, mediation will continue on Sunday.

On Wednesday, on the other hand, a labor dispute in the trade sector between the Service Trade Union PAM and the Trade Union and a labor dispute in the financial administration sector between Erto and Pro and Palta will be mediated. Strike warnings have also been filed for these labor disputes.