RULES AND LAWS: USEFUL INFORMATION WHEN APPLYING WORK

Let´s start from the fact that there are jobs to apply for in Finland. Open jobs can be found through many different media apart from the most official ones like unemployment offices, which also are very good options. There are several temporary work agencies and new mobile applications to connect employers and employees that have been developed. Enterprises announce open vacancies on their own websites and following social media is a very good way to stay up to date.

 It´s Time to Update your CV

To start the application process, you should have a written CV, if not in Finnish, at least in English updated and ready. You can use the template you find opening this link: EU CV

In Finland, most of the working places in the Hospitality business are grateful for a video CV.
Here are some tips to consider:

• maximum length of 2 minutes
• tell your name, where you come from and your education shortly
• describe your working experience related to the job you are applying
• short reasoning why you should be selected
• something personal to be remembered

Here is Eric´s example of a video CV

We also recommend you to have a professional profile on LinkedIn and if you have the interest to brand your skills, we recommend you to start to write a blog and share professional posts in social media.

You can study here how to brand yourself (in Finnish.)

Information about Temporary Work Agencies

Many employees in the Hospitality industry start work through temporary work agencies, which is a good option when you do not yet have a good network in Finland. In such cases, the temporary-work agency pays the worker’s salary and handles all other employer obligations, but the user company’s responsibility is to guide and instruct the worker.

It is important to recognize that in temporary agency work, the worker may not be charged any fees to get work, nor can any commission be deducted from his or her salary.

You can find useful information by opening this link: Temporary Work Agencies

Employees´ Rights and Responsibilities

In Finland, employee’s rights are determined according to labour legislation and collective agreements (työehtosopimus). These specify, for example, minimum wages, working hours, holidays, sick pay and the conditions of terminating a contract of employment.

Paco has experienced the fact that employers follow the rules and laws

Employers’ associations and employees’ associations work together to agree on the working conditions in a certain field. This leads to the creation of collective agreements (TES -työehtosopimus) which all parties need to respect. There are specific agreements for the Hospitality Industry which you find further in this module.

The agreed benefits in a collective agreement are always minimum benefits. They cannot be less in the contract of employment. For example, remuneration cannot be smaller than that which has been agreed upon in the collective agreement. However, an employer and employee can agree on better conditions in the contract of employment than those stipulated in the collective agreement.

Collective agreements for the Restaurant, Hotel and Leisure Industry is universally applicable which means that the employers are legally required to apply at least the minimum terms and conditions to all its employees. There is also universally applicable agreement for Travel agents and Cabin crew, but there are still a couple of jobs such as Local Tour guide or Tourleader which are not included in any agreement but there are recommendations to follow established by the Association for Tour Guides in Finland together with employers.

You can find information about Finnish Labor legislation, also in English, on the Ministry´s webpage. Useful information can be found in several languages also in Infopankki.

Important Things to Know about Salary and Contracts

It is important to know the collective agreement because in Finland there is no action on minimum wage. Minimum wages are always determined according to the collective agreement. It makes sense to find out the size of remuneration within your own field in Finland.

Job advertisements and contracts of employment may read: “palkkaus TES: in mukainen” (“remuneration according to the collective agreement”).

You can find a list of the salaries to Restaurant, Hotel and Leisure Industry here

Good to Know about Salary

• There are some days when the salary is paid with a 100% increase: Sundays, other Church holidays, Independence Day and First of May.
• You also get extra pay when working at night or you work extra hours. All this information  you can find in collective agreement.
• Here you can find information about collective agreements in the hospitality industry

Ask always a written employment contract and check that it includes the following:

1. The parties to the contract of employment
2. The start date for your employment  (and the end day of your employment for a fixed-term contract)
3. Your work-related duties
4. Your working hours or minimum working hours
5. Salary and its method of payment
6. Place of work (community)
7. Your trial period
8. Workplace meals
9. Mention of the collective agreement that the contract of employment observes