Shifting TE services to municipalities risks employment promotion

Transferring the employment and economic development services (TE services) from the central government to the municipalities at the beginning of this year impaired employment promotion and dramatically dropped employees’ wellbeing, according to a survey conducted by the Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors- JHL

Responded of the survey also opined that fumbling preparation and implementation of the shifting failed badly, said JHL in a press release recently referring to the survey conducted in October.

A total of 432 employees of TE services responded to the survey and the number is nearly 10% of all employees in the sector.

The respondents felt that the change was poorly prepared and implemented.

The new organisations are still unfinished, even though the services should have been operational for months. Many respondents think that their job description is unclear.

General dissatisfaction and ill fare have increased at workplaces, said most the respondents, adding, “the number of sick leaves has exploded”.

“Operations are confused. The work is very stressful,” the respondents observed.

“It should be of utmost importance in the current employment situation that Finland has functioning employment services. We cannot afford poor wellbeing of TE services employees,” said the President of JHL Håkan Ekström.

The impression is that employment services have become poorer when they moved from TE Offices to employment areas that are formed from municipalities.

“Employment promotion has been gradually run down in Finland,” commented one of the respondents.

Some respondents told that individual employees have even hundreds of more clients.

“It’s to be feared that for example the long-term unemployed and those who are in a more vulnerable position will be left outside the services,” the respondents said.

Many respondents told the growing unemployment, among other reasons, has significantly increased the numbers of clients. Fixed-term posts have not been renewed, and increased sick leaves have further burdened the employees.

The respondent said that there is not enough money or personnel for taking care of the duties of the employment areas.

“The central government has the responsibility to secure sufficient resources for the municipalities,” Ekström added.

In some places the respondents described that the leadership is authoritarian, leads by fear and is inconsistent. The employees felt that they haven’t been listened to.

The respondents also said that their terms and conditions of employment and working conditions have become poorer: remote work has been drastically limited, and public service working hours have been replaced with general working hours.