Background information

In accordance with section 5 of Unemployment Security Act (Työttömyysturvalaki) (1290/2002), unemployed job-seekers who fulfill the working requirement are entitled to basic unemployement allowance or earnings-related unemployment allowance, depending on whether they are members in a unemployment fund or not. If they do not meet the working requirement, they will receive labour market subsidy instead of unemployment allowance.

Due to market disturbances caused by COVID-19, many workers are or will be temporarily laid off or unemployed. Many of them do not meet the original working requirement of 26 weeks and are not thus entitled to unemployment allowance.

As a result of the temporary amendments to the Unemployment Security Act, the minimum working requirement has been shortened. The requirement is now 13 weeks instead of 26 weeks (during the past 28 months).

Content of measure

This measure applies retroactively to unemployed job-seekers who have worked at least one calendar week since March 2020 and who do not meet the original work requirement of 26 weeks. This applies to both temporarily-laid off job-seekers and job-seekers who are dismissed either due to reasons related to person or financial or production-related reasons.

The original working requirement of 26 weeks is applied to those that meet the original requirement. The shortened requirement of 13 weeks is applied to those who do not meet the original requirement.

As a result of this measure, more unemployed job-seekers will meet the working requirement. If they are members to a unemployment fund, they will receive earnings-related unemployment fund instead of the basic unemployment fund.

Earning-related unemployment allowance is dependent on the wage the unemployed job-seeker has earned during the work requirement period, in other words either the past 13 weeks or 26 weeks (or more).

The average earning-related unemployment fund is €65 per working day whereas the basic unemployment allowance (and the labour market subsidy) is €34 per day.

Use of measure

No information to date.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Unemployed	Does not apply to businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Public employment service	National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative
Form	Direct consultation outside a formal body	Direct consultation outside a formal body

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

In March 2020, the peak-level social partners (the Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland, the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions SAK, the Finnish Confederation of Professionals STTK and the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK) jointly proposed a set of actions for the Finnish Government. The measures were proposed as a package that includes both measures that support adaptation of businesses to the new market situation and measures that improve the situation of employees who have been dismissed or temporarily laid off.

Shortening the working requirement was part of the 15-point list suggested by the social partners.

Furthermore, peak-level social partners were consulted during the drafting period of the amendment.

In May 2020, the peak-level social partners proposed to the Government that the duration of the temporary provisions, including temporarily shortened working requirement, should be extended to the end of 2020.

Views and reactions

The peak-level social partners stress that this measure is part of the wider package of measures (proposed by them in March 2020) and amendments to labour law that include both measures that facilitate adaptation of businesses to the new market situation but also measures that support employees who are being either temporarily or permanently dismissed.

Sources

• 20 March 2020: Social partners’ proposals to help businesses in the corona crisis (akava.fi)
• 02 April 2020: Hallituksen esitys eduskunnalle laeiksi työttömyysturvalain, työttömyysetuuksien rahoituksesta annetun lain ja työttömyyskassalain väliaikaisesta muuttamisesta (www.eduskunta.fi)
• 14 May 2020: Labor market organizations agree on layoffs and unemployment security (Työmarkkinakeskusjärjestöt sopuun lomautuksista ja työttömyysturvasta) (ek.fi)
• 23 June 2020: Measures that have brought security and flexibility to labour markets during coronavirus epidemic will be extended (Jatkoa toimille, joilla on tuotu turvaa ja joustoa työmarkkinoille korona-aikana) (tem.fi)