Worker shortage hinders Finnish firms´ growth: OP

Lack of experts slows down investments in every third large company, with every fourth having to lower recruitment criteria to hire employees, according to a survey commissioned OP Financial Group.

More than six out of ten Finnish large companies have reported that recruitment has become more difficult during the last year due to a shortage of experts, said OP in a press release on Tuesday, quoting its Corporate Pulse survey.

Over a fourth of companies have had to lower recruitment criteria to be able to hire employees. Companies attempt to attract experts by adding methods related to commitment.

Recruitment challenges are highlighted especially in the service sector.

About 27 per cent of large companies have reported having to lower their recruitment criteria to be able to hire employees. Recruitment issues are particularly acute in expert and manual work positions.

“Large companies are facing a lack of experts and are calling for the facilitation of labour immigration. The acquisition of a foreign work force is seen as a solution in various lines of work. The service sector faces a shortage of workers, whereas the IT sector is challenged by an increasing shortage of specialists. The green transition will also necessitate a great deal of new expertise in Finland,” said Katja Keitaanniemi, Chief Executive Officer of OP Corporate Bank.

A third of large companies state that the shortage of experts will slow down corporate investments in 2023.

“The slowdown in investments can be particularly seen in the service sector. It is difficult to make investments with a lack of employees. The good news, however, is that almost half of the large companies responding to our survey say that the expert shortage is not slowing down investments,” said Keitaanniemi.

As many as 77 per cent of companies reported an increase in measures related to employee retention and engagement over the past year. Enabling hybrid work was mentioned by companies as a relatively new method.

“Among the means of employee retention and engagement, performance-related remuneration, enabling hybrid work, and the provision of training and employment benefits were mentioned in particular. The possibility of hybrid work is a relatively new commitment method, but today it is an important criteria for experts seeking work,” Keitaanniemi added.

A total of 100 Finnish companies with net sales of at least 100 million euros responded to the Corporate Pulse survey, implemented by Taloustutkimus Oy. The survey was conducted over phone in May 2023.