Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1987, published 74th ILC session (1987)

Labour Administration Convention, 1978 (No. 150) - Finland (Ratification: 1980)

The Committee has noted with interest the information supplied by the Government in reply to its previous comments, including the valuable information supplied in connection with the Committee's general request of 1986 concerning international technical co-operation in the area of labour administration. The Committee has noted with particular interest the increase in total staff levels and in the proportion of permanent staff, the completion in June 1986 of the report of a committee considering that the scope of activity of the Ministry of Labour should be extended with clearly defined responsibilities, the changes made in the system of wages security and the development of employment training.

The Committee asks the Government to keep it informed on the occasion of the Government's next report, of action taken regarding possible extension of the Ministry's responsibility and organisational measures taken in consequence. The Committee would also like to be kept informed of measures taken to overcome the problem of non-permanent personnel.

The Committee has also noted from the Government's report the further comments made by employers' and workers' organisations on some aspects of the application of the Convention.

According to the Government's report, the Finnish Employers' Confederation (STK) and the Employers' Confederation of Service Industries (LTK) have noted that, although there is a sufficient number of possible co-operation bodies within labour administration, the views of the employers' organisations are not yet adequately taken into consideration in the decision-making of manpower policy. These organisations have drawn attention to the fact that, when the Advisory Board on Employment Matters was set up for a three-year period starting at the beginning of 1985, the number of representatives of the employers was reduced to two members. The employees' organisations have five representatives in the Board.

The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK) considers that the possibilities of the trade union movement to influence the decision-making of manpower policy have deterioriated to a certain extent. The organisation has also drawn attention to the need to increase the efficiency of the activity of labour administration. Especially employment exchange, vocational guidance and employment training should be developed. Resources have been focused too extensively on administrative tasks for the support of employment.

The Confederation of Salaried Employees (TVK) has noted that the labour administration lacks sufficient resources for its central task, the provision of labour services. Consequently, the employment exchange is unable to provide sufficiently flexible and rapid services. According to this organisation, essential defects are, e.g. the insufficiency concerning the information on vacant jobs, and on the mobility of manpower, the insufficient notion of the personnel as to working life, the inadequate co-operation in the local employment exchange between the authorities and the labour market parties, as well as the insufficiency of vocational guidance and employment training.

The organisation referred to in the Government's report as STTK, has noted that the employment exchange for salaried employees has insufficient resources and that its services do not meet the changing demands.

The Committee would ask the Government to provide, on the occassion of its next report, information on measures that it intends to take on the above-mentioned comments.