European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
Eurofound's ERM database on restructuring-related legal regulations provides information on regulations in the Member States of the European Union and Norway which are explicitly or implicitly linked to anticipating and managing change.
Cooperation Act [Yhteistoimintalaki] 1333/2021, Chapter 3, Section 20, 22, 44
Under the Cooperation Act, the employer is obligated to address the grounds for and effects of planned staff reductions during operation negotiations. In addition, the employer is obligated to give genuine consideration to alternative solutions, including ways to limit the scope of the reductions and mitigate their consequences for employees. Furthermore, the employer must consider alternative proposals put forward by the employee or employee representatives and, if these are not deemed feasible, provide a reasoned written explanation thereof. This obligation is fulfilled as part of the requirement to conduct negotiations in a spirit of cooperation and to strive for consensus. If the employer fails to fulfil these negotiation obligations, the employer may be required to pay the employee compensation up to the maximum amount prescribed by law.
The obligation does not apply to agencies or bodies of the state, municipalities, joint municipal authorities [kuntayhtymät], wellbeing services counties [hyvinvointialueet], joint county authorities for wellbeing services [hyvinvointiyhtymät], the Evangelical Lutheran Church, the Orthodox Church, or Åland.
The Act was subject to changes during the Government's reform of working life legislation in 2024. The government reform aimed to, among other things, strengthen the operating conditions of small and medium-sized companies. The amendments to the Co-operation Act had the purpose of reducing the administrative burden caused by legislation, especially in companies with fewer than 50 employees.
Also, the time of negotiations was shortened - from six weeks to between seven days and three weeks.
The reform was discussed in a tripartite working group that consisted of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment [Työ- ja elinkeinoministeriö] and peak-level trade unions and employer organisations. The discussions resulted in dissenting views by the employee and employer sides. The social partners disagreed mainly on the broader regulatory framework and the changes to cooperation negotiations in general. In their comments on the government proposal, both the peak-level trade unions and the employer organisation addressed social dialogue and change-negotiation structures, without specifically mentioning the obligation to consider alternatives.
During the consultation round, no comments were left by social partners on the paragraphs relevant for this case.
Eurofound (2026), Finland: Obligation to consider alternatives to collective dismissals, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/obligation-to-consider-alternatives-to-collective-dismissals/finland
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