Finnish government breaks records – Now platform companies are brought into international labour law negotiations

The Finnish government has appointed a representative of a platform company as part of Finland’s employer delegation to the International Labour Organization (ILO) Conference. SAK’s Senior Legal Adviser Paula Ilveskivi considers the government’s move unprecedented.

Over the past two years, the Finnish government’s labour policy has aligned itself almost entirely with the wishlist of the employers’ confederation. Workers’ rights and social security have been systematically eroded—at a pace and in a manner that can only be described as exceptional in the history of the Finnish labour market.

And now, the Finnish government is crossing yet another line. It has sent a representative of the platform company Wolt as part of the national employer delegation to the ILO Conference. The appointment and registration can be found publicly on the ILO website.

“This conference is not an ordinary seminar. Its agenda includes a two-year negotiation process aimed at preparing a binding international convention on the status and rights of platform workers,” Paula Ilveskivi stresses

Until now, platform companies have carried out their lobbying behind closed doors—at the EU level, nationally, in policy consultations and in hearing rooms. However, they have not had seats at official working groups or negotiation tables.

Now the influence campaign enters a new phase: the Finnish government is granting companies direct access to the core of international negotiations.

“The move is unprecedented. Why in this particular matter—strengthening workers’ rights globally—does the Finnish government consider it appropriate to grant a seat to a platform company representative?” Ilveskivi asks.

According to Ilveskivi, this is not just symbolic.

“It is about who has the power to shape the future of work life. And now the Finnish government seems prepared to hand this power more directly to corporate actors—even at the international level. With actions like this, the government is not simply ignoring workers. It is actively working against their rights.”

The ILO Conference is currently underway in Geneva, Switzerland. Paula Ilveskivi is participating in the conference as a representative of the Finnish labour movement.