Police, prison, state treasury staff warn of strike on April 15, 16

Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors JHL, the Negotiation Organisation for Public Sector Professionals JUKO, and Trade Union Pro issued a strike warning for selected state sector workplaces for 15 and 16 April, said the unions in a press release on Monday.

The state sector employees issued the strike warning demanding collective agreement negotiation and pay hike that follow the general level.

The strike is scheduled to be observed in Police administration at the Western Uusimaa Police Department and all of its units, Prison and Probation Service of Finland at Hämeenlinna and Vantaa prisons excepting prisoners’ health care and State Treasury.

The strike will also take place at the Finnish Government Shared Services Centre for Finance and HR (Palkeet), the city of Hämeenlinna, government ICT Centre Valtori and all locations in the city of Helsinki, excluding tasks related to county and municipal elections.

The Office for the Government as Employer (VTML) halted the state sector collective agreement negotiations on 7 March and has since then shown no willingness to resume them, said the unions.

Before employer party stopped negotiations, the pay rises that it had offered were clearly below the general level.

“State sector employees work in duties that are necessary for the functioning of society and for its security. The amount of responsibility and the influence on the citizens’ daily lives need to be considered also when the terms and conditions of employment are developed and when pay rises are agreed. The employer’s withdrawal from the negotiations has been quite inconceivable and irresponsible in the situation we have in the world today. The state sector professionals deserve in every way more appreciation from their employer than what they experience now,” said President of JHL Håkan Ekström.

“The state sector employees deserve proper pay rises, and at the same time we keep our expectations realistic. The same general level that has been widely established in the agreements of other sectors is good for us. That is not too much to ask,” said President of Trade Union Pro Niko Simola.

“Even when the economic situation is difficult, the professionals of security and all state employees deserve pay rises that are as big as in other sectors. We want to develop the agreement, and we do not accept the employer’s unilateral decision to halt the negotiations. This situation is unreasonable for the employees, and therefore we defend our right to negotiate on the agreement independently,” said President of JUKO's state sector negotiating committee Jonne Rinne.

“Despite the different views of the employees and the government as employer, we have always sought a mutual solution. We are disappointed because the employer now does not want to negotiate on pay rises at all. We are forced to expand industrial action to strikes,” pointed out JUKO’s Head of Collective Bargaining Minna Salminen.

The state sector strike will start on 15 April at 00.01 am and end on 16 April at 11.59 pm.

The strike applies to all work shifts that start during this time interval in the listed locations.

Work tasks that must be performed in order to protect people's life or health or to prevent significant danger to property are excluded from the strike.

Also work tasks that are connected to the county and municipal elections are ruled out of the strike.

The employee organisations have already earlier announced bans on overtime and shift swaps and a ban to accrue flex hours for all state-sector employees who are in a contractual employment relationship. These bans have been effective since 19 March.

If the Office for the Government as Employer is unwilling to negotiate, the employee organisations are prepared to expand their industrial action.

The state sector collective agreement (collective agreement for government) covers 76,000 civil servants and employees under contract.