Employers demand scrapping of premia for weekend work

In July 2004, several Finnish employers’ organisations proposed the abolition of premium rates of pay for weekend work, which they believe increase labour costs excessively and thus harm companies and employment levels. Trade union strongly oppose any such move and question the employers' arguments.

Employees in Finland are legally guaranteed double pay for work performed on Sundays, and collective agreements in most sectors include premium rates of pay for Saturday work. These entitlements were denounced in July 2004 by a number of employers’ organisations in both industry and the services sector. The Finnish Food and Drink Industries' Federation (Elintarviketeollisuusliitto, ETL) demanded that Saturdays and Sundays should be treated as regular working days, because the current high cost of labour on these days prevents the food and drink industries from responding to demand from the the retail sector. The opening hours of shops have been deregulated in Finland in recent years and many establishments now stay open on Sundays. According to ETL, it is difficult for its members to provide these shops with fresh produce because of the high costs involved.

The Employers’ Confederation of Service Industries (Palvelutyönantajat, PT) joined ETL in demanding the scrapping of weekend pay premia. To compensate for the ensuing loss to workers, it would be prepared to increase basic wages. It argues that weekend premia both hurt businesses and hinder job creation in the service sector - half of restaurants, for instance, keep their doors closed on Sundays although demand exists for more to open, PT insists. The Finnish Hotel and Restaurant Association (Suomen Hotelli- ja Ravintolaliitto, SHR), an affiliate of PT, agrees. It estimates that about 1,000 more people would be employed if waiting staff were not paid higher rates for weekend work.

Trade unions have strongly opposed the employers' demands. The position of the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (Suomen Ammattiliittojen Keskusjärjestö, SAK) is that work done at weekends should continue to be an exception. Since Finnish working life is based on a five-day working week, those sacrificing the general days off on Saturday and Sunday in order to work should receive financial compensation for doing so, SAK states. Furthermore, it does not believe that more jobs would actually come about as a result of scrapping the pay premia. The Service Union United (Palvelualojen ammattiliitto, PAM) shares this view. It also claims that the debate over weekend work was started by employers’ organisations merely as a way of creating an adversarial climate in the run-up to negotiations over a new incomes policy deal to succeed the current 2003-4 central agreement. The talks will take place in autumn 2004 and PAM regards it as impossible that unions would even negotiate over the issue of weekend pay premia. PT responded to PAM's claims by asserting that its demands represent much more than pure rhetoric and that the issue has already been on its agenda in previous incomes policy negotiations. It did not comment on whether or not the issue will be raised in the next round of talks (FI0212103F).