This is a translation of YTN's press release on 31st January. For most recent updates please check YTN's website.
YTN previously announced a strike in certain companies in the industry 1–3 February. Thousands of TEK members are affected by these strikes.
The strikes will take place if no agreement can be reached in the negotiations. Should the second strike take place, it would involve no less than roughly 20 000 professional and managerial employees. The second strike involves different companies than the first strike. The companies involved in the 1–3 February strike can be found here and the companies in the 15–17 February strike here.
The so-called overtime ban affecting the entire industry will continue. It means that employees do not work overtime, travel for work in their free time or accumulate any extra hours. Employees in the sector therefore only work the hours stated in their employment contract. A similar ban is in place in the consulting sector.
YTN decided to announce the second strike, because mediation of the labour dispute has not progressed and mediation ended on 31 January with no settlement so far. The employers and unions disagree over adequate wage increases in the industries.
“It’s time for the employers to realize that purchasing power needs to be taken seriously. The increase in prices ate up a large portion of salaries last year and inflation will continue high this year,” says TEK's Labour Market Director and Chair of YTN Teemu Hankamäki.
YTN has been negotiating new collective agreements in the technology industry and the consulting sector with the Technology Industry Employers of Finland since autumn. The old collective agreements were terminated at the end of November 2022. Ever since then, professional and managerial staff have worked without an agreement.
“We wish that we did not have to organize strikes and that wage earners could focus on productive work. But if the employers do not agree to a decent increase, we are left with no other option,” says YTN’s Negotiations Manager Petteri Oksa.
The Industrial Union, which negotiates employee agreements in the technology industry, rejected the proposal for settlement made by the National Conciliator on Friday, 27 January, as insufficient. The increase over two years was too small overall and would have been unevenly distributed among members, because only a part of it was an across-the-board increase.
“The proposal for settlement rejected by the Industrial Union would not have been approved by us either. It was insufficient both in terms of level and structure. We have also been told that we do not want to be given the same across-the-board increase as what was stated in this proposal,” says Oksa.
“In these exceptional circumstances, a general increase is even more important than it would otherwise be,” Hankamäki continues.
At the same time, the situation with companies has mainly been extremely positive, and companies have successfully managed to pass on their higher costs into prices. Big companies have announced good results in the last few days and promised high dividends.
More information about strikes and other pressure measures for TEK members