Collective bargaining overview: Industrial Union approves settlements with Technology Industries and Chemical Industry Federation

The SAK trade unions are currently engaged in a lively round of collective bargaining. National collective agreements in the road transport, commerce, food, agriculture, and other sectors expired at the end of January, with corresponding agreements for employees in central government, the church, stevedoring and the construction industry set to run out at the end of February.

The Industrial Union approved new collective agreements for the technology industries, three chemical industry sectors and ore mining on 22 February. These three-year agreements will increase pay by an average of 8 per cent in total over the agreement period. The parties are free to revoke the final year of these agreements.

National collective bargaining in the technology industries began in September, with the Industrial Union calling several targeted work stoppages at businesses in the sector. The other SAK trade unions arranged sympathetic industrial action and handling embargoes in support of this collective bargaining.

The Industrial Union has also already concluded individual enterprise agreements with more than 60 operators in the mechanical forest industry, with negotiations continuing at a further twenty companies over the spring.

Strike arranged in retail trading last week

Service Union United PAM called three-day strikes in grocery shops and commercial logistics last week. A ban on shift changes, transfers and overtime continues in the sector. PAM reports that its bargaining counterpart, the Finnish Commerce Federation, has no genuine desire to negotiate a settlement.

PAM is currently negotiating several other collective agreements in service sectors. It has broken off collective bargaining at ski resorts, launched a ban on overtime and shift changes in the sector, and called a strike for 3–4 March 2025. PAM has also suspended bargaining in the customer service and telemarketing sector, and has called a strike for 6–7 March 2025.

The Trade Union for Theatre and Media Finland (Teme) and the Union of Journalists in Finland have jointly called a 24-hour strike in film and television production for 8 March 2025. Teme has also announced a ban on overtime and extended work in the sector. The union is dissatisfied with the progress made in negotiations with the Service Sector Employers Palta.

Teme is currently also bargaining on behalf of dance teachers, theatre industry employees and other workers.

Transport unions step up cooperation in bargaining

The Finnish Air Line Pilots’ Association SLL, Finnish Transport Workers’ Union AKT and Finnish Aviation Union IAU have agreed to cooperate in the ongoing bargaining round. These unions are seeking collective agreements with the Service Sector Employers Palta that accommodate exceptional settlements concluded in the recent past.

All three unions are currently engaged in intensive collective bargaining. In February SLL turned down a third proposal from the national conciliator seeking to settle an industrial dispute concerning Finnair pilots. The union was unimpressed by the proposal from the perspective of pilots. SLL has been bargaining with Palta in this sector since August.

Collective bargaining is also ongoing in the food industry, in the electrification and electrical installation, construction and church sectors, and on behalf of central government officials and employees. The Finnish Food Workers’ Union SEL and the Finnish Electrical Workers’ Union have announced a ban on overtime and shift changes in the food industry to boost the bargaining process. SEL has also issued a strike warning concerning work at 150 bakeries between 11 and 16 March 2025. The Electrical Workers’ Union has also issued a strike warning for the food industry for the same period.

Negotiations on new collective agreements will be monitored on the Finnish-language SAK website.