Immigration helps solve the shortage of labour

The idea that Finland would become “Japan of the North” and isolate its open economy from the outside world is catastrophic. In worst-case scenarios, Finland’s demographic change is seriously threatening the economic growth of our country. This negative cycle must absolutely be broken. Welfare services of the future cannot be financed without economic growth.

Finland is ageing and jobs need to be found for the country’s own unemployed people. However, Finland also needs new recruits. These recruits are not only top specialists with a high level of productivity. In terms of numbers, many more people come to Finland to carry out different kinds of important manual work.

These employees are and will be working in the sectors covered by trade unions. Furthermore, they are and will be trade union members. JHL is engaged in immigrant activities and we also have, say, immigrant networks such as the KaMuT network.

Proper rules are necessary

Labour immigration is needed, but the rules of working life have to be in order. In addition to having the people who enter the country work under the terms and conditions of employment agreed in collective agreements, labour market crime must be prevented.

Labour market test as a general principle should be preserved in such a way that one will only deviate from the principle for justified reasons. The largest bottlenecks of labour immigration are elsewhere – in income limits and the integration of all family members. Integration obligations can be included in the requirements for issuing residence permits as long as there are services, especially Finnish language teaching, available. Immigrants have a responsibility to integrate.

Entry processes must be made a lot smoother. In the age of electronic services, one should start implementing a non-linear model in which more and more bureaucracy would be taken care of in an online service with a one-stop-shop principle instead of running “from one service point to another in the right order” and waiting. This model, which would apply to all immigrants, has been presented by the start-up community and JHL supports it.

We took initiative when the current Finnish Government decided in the government formation talks to establish a new police unit for fighting human trafficking. We now need to take more action.

JHL has published many goals with which one can tighten the rules of working life and decrease labour market crime.

Now we ask which political parties are ready to promote the goals mentioned above.

When the rules of working life are in order, Finnish people are ready to stand for labour immigration. In May 2022, JHL commissioned a survey on how Finnish people relate to labour immigration. Kantar-TNS conducted the survey by commission of JHL. Over 1,000 people replied to it. Two out of three (67%) respondents were of the opinion that Finland needs more labour immigrants.

Finland’s population is ageing – measures are needed

JHL has looked into the effects of demographic change on the Finnish labour market.

According to the report, the change is so enormous that it should be one of the key themes for the country’s next government. Reacting to it requires many measures, particularly:

1. Succeeding at prolonging careers
2. Increasing the Finnish employment rate
3. Large-scale labour immigration, which we understand to mean that all those moving to Finland belong to the workforce
4. A child-friendly society where people are encouraged to have children.

At the moment, care sector’s occupations are suffering from the largest shortage of employees. As Finland is nearing full employment, there will be more such sectors in the future. It is obvious that jobs requiring competence cannot directly be done by immigrant labour.

However, labour reserve is an entirety. In the future, there must be enough people who are studying to become care assistants, practical nurses and registered nurses, in addition to the other occupations.

That’s why we at JHL, under the guidance of President Päivi Niemi-Laine, have worked actively in order to get the sector’s pay in order. It is necessary to attract new employees and hold on to the old ones.