A client at the queue ticket machine of a TE Office in Pasila, Helsinki, in March 2023. Three months is simply not enough to find a job in Finland, view the vast majority of individuals and organisations that commented on a government proposal to introduce a three-month re-employment requirement for work permit holders. (Vesa Moilanen – Lehtikuva)
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THE GOVERNMENT of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) received predominantly pessimistic feedback for its proposal to obligate work-based residence permit holders to leave the country if they fail to re-employ themselves within three months of becoming unemployed.
Only two of the 118 comments submitted during the newly concluded comment period viewed that the proposed time window is long enough to find a new job in Finland.
Many of the comments make the same arguments: The time window is completely insufficient. The proposal alone will have a negative impact on the country’s image and ability to attract international talent.
The proposal was portrayed as part of a string of reforms that increase uncertainty and monitoring of immigrants in Finland.
“You are currently creating regulation that portrays everyone moving into the country as a threat or as a commodity to be disposed after use,” wrote Moniheli, an umbrella network of around 160 multicultural organisations in Finland.
The government faced criticism for neglecting to provide estimates or research data on the average duration of job search in different fields. Some questioned the need for such a narrow time window by arguing that immigrants are generally uninterested in prolonging the search despite the availability social security benefits.
“In general, immigrants are motivated to start working as soon as possible,” stressed the well-being services county for South Ostrobothnia.
The University of Helsinki viewed that the effort has caused indirect damage to both its reputation as an employer and the country’s image as a place of residence and employment.
The City of Tampere pointed to an apparent contradiction between the three-month rule and the obligation of employers to offer vacancies to employees laid off from same or similar positions no more than four to six months earlier. The city also urged the government address the risk of labour exploitation in the legislative reform.
“Even the draft proposal acknowledged the risk that foreign employees may end up in a situation where they have to accept weaker employment terms or lower pay in order to stay in the country,” it said.
Victim Support Finland (Riku) additionally warned that the draft proposal could increase the illegal terminations of foreign employees by effectively limiting their ability to take legal recourse.
“It would deny many the opportunity to contest a possibly illegal termination and seek compensation for it. When an employee contests an illegal termination, the process lasts more than three months almost without exception,” wrote Riku.
Minister of Employment Arto Satonen (NCP) declared last week that the government has no intention of scrapping or amending the proposal and expressed his doubt that the proposal could have a significant impact on the country’s appeal.
Business Finland, the government organisation for innovation funding and trade, travel and investment promotion, had contrastively viewed that the government has already damaged the country image with its actions, with the mere mention of the re-employment rule in the government programme signalling a lack of appreciation for and interest in holding on to international talent.
Foreigners in Finland, it added, have a considerable effect on how the country is perceived by people around the world who are exploring their career options abroad.
“If they do not feel welcome, you cannot make up for that by promoting the country image,” it said.
On Thursday, Satonen wrote in a column that he recognises the need for work-based immigration and encouraged employers to “seize the opportunities” of international recruitment.
Aleksi Teivainen – HT
- Next Article Finnish labor market faces dual challenges: Employment levels steady, but long-term unemployment rises
Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
