Post on 30-May-2022
Living and Working in Finland Information for an EU Jobseeker
Coimbra 20. – 21.5.2014 Engineers Mobility Days
EURES FINLAND
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Living and Working in Finland
• Introduction
• Labour market situation
• Searching for a job
• Training and studying
• Moving to Finland
• Living and working conditions
• Where to find further information
19.5.2014 EURES Finland 2
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5,4 million inhabitants
Parliamentary republic since 1917
Neighbouring countries: Sweden, Norway, Russia, Estonia
Two official languages: Finnish (90%) and Swedish (5,4%)
Religions: Evangelical-Lutherans (77,3%), Orthodoxs (1,1%)
Member of the EU since 1995
Foreign citizens 3,6% (mainly in Helsinki metropolitan area)
Currency: Euro
Introduction
EURES Finland
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Biggest cities - number of inhabitants Helsinki 604 000 Espoo 257 000 Tampere 217 000 Vantaa 205 000 Oulu 191 000 Turku 180 000 Jyväskylä 133 000 Kuopio 105 000 Lahti 103 000
Four seasons - cold winters and warm summers 2012 extremes: -42.7 °C (Inari) +31.0 °C (Lieksa)
EURES Finland
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Finnish labour market
76 % of employees work under a permanent full time contract
9 % of employees work under a fixed-term contract
11 % of employees have part-time contract
Women participate in the labour market whereas men. Employment rate for women is 68 %
70% of workers belong to a trade union
Labour shortages and unemployment commonly occur simultaneously in the Finnish labour market
Source: Statistics Finland 02/2013
• EURES Finland
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Finnish labour market
Employment rate 67,6 % in February 2013
Unemployment rate 8,7 % in February 2013
45 000 new vacancies at the Employment and Economic Development Office (TE Office) on average every month (2012)
Number of employed persons 26 000 less than a year ago
Source: Statistics Finland 2013, Ministry of Employment and the Economy, 2013
(OECD/ILO definition)
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UNEMPLOYED
JOBSEEKERS’
PERCENTAGE
OF THE WORKFORCE
BY MUNICIPALITY
ANNUAL AVERAGE 2012
% (number)
Source:
Ministry of Employment and the Economy,
Employment Service Statistics 2013
Regional labour market situation
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Labour shortages
Most problematic situation:
health care sector, service sector, social services and catering
TOP 10 Shortages 2013
• registered nurses
• medical doctors
• sales representatives
• accounting staff
• psychologist
• cooks/chefs
• cleaners
• physiotherapist
• social workers
• waiters
EURES Finland
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Language skills requirements
Finnish usually required, in some areas Swedish
In English may manage for example:
seasonal gardening, berry picking, kitchen work
IT, engineering, international business, research
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Foreigners in Finland
3,6 % of the population are foreigners (195 511)
Biggest nationality groups are Estonians (39 763), Russians (30 183), Swedes (8 412) and Somalis (7 468)
The sectors with most foreign workers are services and construction. As seasonal workers in agriculture and forestry
59 600 foreign jobseekers in the TE Offices, which is 8 % of all the jobseekers
Source: Statistics Finland 02/2013, Ministry of Employment and the Economy, 2013
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Employment and Economic Development Office - vacancies: www.te-palvelut.fi
Vacancies in the largest newspapers www.oikotie.fi
Academic recruitment services: www.aarresaari.net
Companies often recruit through their own internet sites.
• Typical address is: www.companyname.fi
List of 100 largest Finnish companies: www.uranus.fi
Private recruitment agencies e.g. www.hpl.fi, www.manpower.fi, www.adecco.fi, www.barona.fi, www.staffpoint.fi
Direct contact with employers!
Searching for a job
EURES Finland
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Standard application procedures
CV and application letter - possibly also copies of school leaving certificates and references
Examples of CVs: http://europass.europa.eu
Employers usually choose 3 to 5 applicants to be interviewed
Certificates and references will be studied closely
For demanding posts usually 2 to 3 interviews will be conducted; also an aptitude test is possible
Some employers make only the final selection - the rest of the recruitment process may be outsourced
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Practical training and studying
Many practical training opportunities for international students and recent graduates in Finland
Centre for International Mobility (CIMO) organizes many of the practical training programmes - see also student organisations like ELSA, IAAS, IFMSA, AIESEC
Master’s Thesis/ Thesis co-operation available
Degree studying (Bachelor’s or Master’s degree) is free of charge
More information:
• CIMO - Centre for International Mobility www.studyinfinland.fi
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International student mobility
Finland has 16 universities and 25 polytechnics
Over 350 study programmes are taught in English in higher education institutes
In 2010 appr. 9000 students came to Finland, mostly from Germany (1235), France (1208), Spain (896), Italy (522), Russia (425) and Poland (372)
89 % of the international students are generally happy or very happy with their Finnish institution of higher education and study in Finland
Finland is one of the most popular destination countries for exchange students (10th among 31 countries)
Source: Centre for International Mobility CIMO 2013
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Recognition of qualifications
Finnish National Board of Education (OPH)
Contact before coming to Finland
Recognition required for posts in public sector
Not required for private sector, unless the profession in question is regulated (e.g. electricians, pilots)
Right to practise profession needed for the following professions:
Different authorities grant the right
More information: www.oph.fi/info/recognition
• Health care professionals
• Veterinary surgeons
• Chartered accountants
• Chartered public finance auditors
• Advocates
• Seafarers
EURES Finland
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EU registration at the local police www.poliisi.fi
Population register and home municipality at the magistrate/registration office www.maistraatti.fi
Social security at the local social insurance office www.kela.fi
If employed: Tax card at the local tax office www.vero.fi
If unemployed: Employment and Economic Development Office (TE Office) www.te-palvelut.fi
Moving to Finland - First steps
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Collective agreements specifying pay rates for various sectors
If there is no collective agreement (e.g. domestic helpers), the salary should be at least 1 134 €/month in 2013)
Regular working hours are 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week, with two days' leave per calendar month worked
More information: www.tyosuojelu.fi, www.te-palvelut.fi/finnwork, www.tem.fi ˃ labour legislation
Ask for the employment contract in written form!
Terms of Employment
EURES Finland
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Examples of gross incomes
Engineer 4 000 € / month
Carpenter 2 000 € / month
Secretary 2 100 – 2 600 € / month
Bus driver 2 700 € / month
Cleaner 1 500 – 2 000 € / month
Shop assistant 1 600 – 2 100 € /month
Medical nurse 2 800 € / month
Social worker 3 000 € / month
An average Finnish salary is 3109 € / month (2011)
Source: Statistics Finland
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Progressive income tax
Example: the share of all taxes and compulsory contributions (incl. social security payments 7,1 %)
• Salary 2500 €/month → tax 26 %*
• Salary 3000 €/month → tax 29 %*
* Local taxes vary from one city/municipality to the other; members of the
Finnish Lutheran/Orthodox church pay a church tax (1 – 2,25 %)
If stay up to 6 months, you can choose also tax at source 35%
(NB! Tax deduction of 510 € each month)
More information: www.vero.fi
Taxation
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Finland European Job Days 2013 in Porto 20
Costs of living - Accommodation
Average rent for a two room flat (50 m²): 500 – 800 €/month
Average price for a two room flat: 80 000 – 160 000 €
In Helsinki metropolitan area the prices are twice as much
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Internet portals: www.oikotie.fi, www.etuovi.com
Newspapers: www.sanomalehdet.fi
Housing in Finland: www.housing.fi
Municipalities in Finland: www.kunnat.net
Youth hostels: www.hostellit.fi
Accommodation - More information
EURES Finland
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Costs of living
Food and beverage
• Milk 1 l 0,87 €
• Eggs kg 3,93 €
• Bread kg 3,56 €
• Coffee 500 g 4,11 €
• Beer 1,80 €
Public and private transport
• Petrol 95 E/ 1litre 1,67 €
• Train trip 400 km 60 €
• Bus card, 1 month 46 €
Source: Statistics Finland, National Consumer Research Centre
Others
Kindergarten 24-264 €/month
Library free of charge
Cinema ticket 10-14 €
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EURES portal
eures.europa.eu
Ministry of Employment and the Economy www.tem.fi
Further information
Foreigners working in Finland
www.te-palvelut.fi/finnwork
www.infopankki.fi
Studying and practical training in Finland
www.studyinfinland.fi
General information on Finland www.thisisFINLAND.fi
EURES Finland
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