Chair of the Service Union United PAM, Annika Rönni-Sällinen, at PAM’s press conference in Helsinki on 5 March 2025. The Service Union United PAM and the Confederation of Finnish Commerce, representing employers, have approved the negotiated agreement for the retail sector. LEHTIKUVA
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The Service Union United (PAM) has approved a new collective agreement for the retail sector, securing a 7.8% wage increase over the next three years. The decision also means that planned strikes, which were set to begin later this month, have been called off.
The deal, negotiated with the Confederation of Finnish Commerce, is valid until January 2028 but includes an option to terminate it a year earlier.
Wages will increase in three stages: a 2.9% raise on 1 May 2025, followed by a 2.5% increase in August 2026, and a final 2.4% raise in May 2027. A new wage structure will be introduced in October 2026.
PAM chair Annika Rönni-Sällinen described the agreement as aligning with the broader trend of wage settlements in Finland. However, she expressed disappointment that a clause protecting current dismissal protections was not included.
“The protection against dismissal remains tied to legislation, which the government is now changing to weaken worker rights. Since we could not secure this in the agreement, we will now focus on influencing legislation and supporting our members in dismissal cases,” Rönni-Sällinen stated.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s government is pushing for labour law changes that would make it easier for employers to terminate workers. Currently, dismissal requires a “substantive and weighty reason,” but the new legislation would lower the threshold to just a “substantive reason.”
PAM had sought to include safeguards in the agreement to counteract these changes, but the employer side rejected the proposal. The union has vowed to monitor how retail companies apply the new dismissal rules and to challenge cases it deems unfair.
The agreement also includes measures to improve the situation for part-time workers. A joint working group has been established to address their rights, and discussions will continue on implementing an EU court ruling regarding additional hours for part-time employees.
Despite these developments in the retail sector, PAM remains in dispute with employers in other industries. A strike affecting the customer service and telemarketing sector is set to begin, involving approximately 1,300 workers. The union is demanding wage increases that would improve purchasing power and protections for remote workers, but negotiations have stalled.
HT
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Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
