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Finnish trade unions announced on Friday that they would shut down civil air traffic for the first two days of February, further increasing plans for a strike to protest the government’s proposed labor market reforms.
The Union of Public and Welfare Workers (JHL), which has around 165,000 members, said in a statement that it, along with other trade unions, will “block commercial air traffic in Finland” on February 1 and 2.
The strike was not initiated due to a dispute with the employer, but as a form of protest against the government’s proposed labor market reforms.
“The strike is a political industrial action and does not target the employer,” the union’s interim president Hakan Ekström said in a statement.
The conservative coalition government of Petteri Orpo, which took office in 2023, says Finland’s labor market needs to be reformed.
According to the government, the aim is to “promote the creation of an export-oriented labor market model” in order to “enhance Finland’s long-term competitiveness”.
The group highlighted changes to Finland’s collective bargaining rules and said it would “explore ways to deter industrial action”.
The government announced on Tuesday that it would appoint a working group to prepare “legal reforms”.
Earlier this week, Finland’s industrial and service trade union PAM also announced a large-scale strike in early February, targeting not only restaurants and hotels, but also industry and retail.
Finnish media also reported that more unions would announce actions next week.
According to public broadcaster YLE, schools, daycare centers and medical institutions may also be affected by the strike.
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