- Finance Finland considers the Government’s proposed reform of work-based immigration rules to be detrimental to the economy and citizens of Finland.
- Finance Finland is strongly opposed to the proposed law that would leave people on work-based residence permits at risk of deportation unless they get a new job within three or six months after becoming unemployed.
- The reform would significantly hamper work-based immigration, which is direly needed by the Finnish labour market.
Finance Finland is opposed to the Finnish Government’s proposal that would leave people on work-based residence permits at risk of deportation unless they get a new job within three months after becoming unemployed. Managers and specialists would be subject to a six-month deadline, which is also too short considering the competitive restrictions and security screenings that such positions often entail.
“Such rules send the wrong signal to international professionals who are considering a career in Finland. We need to attract skilled employees, not drive them out”, says Finance Finland’s CEO Arno Ahosniemi.
Finland has growing need for work-based immigration due to our rapidly ageing population. However, the competition for skilled employees is intense across Europe – and the Government’s proposal is likely to weaken Finland’s appeal to global professionals.
“When a person becomes unemployed, the reasons are usually productional: the company is not profitable enough and needs to cut jobs. It’s unfair if it’s the workers who have immigrated to Finland who have to bear the brunt of this.”
Ahosniemi points out that three months is a short time to find a new job even for a Finnish citizen, let alone an immigrant. Ahosniemi fails to understand the plans to deport people and families who have been paying taxes for years and have their lives settled in Finland.
Other Finnish industries are also critical of the proposal
The Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK) also rejected the proposed deadlines. According to EK, providing managers and specialists with a longer six-month deadline is a step in the right direction, but both deadlines should be lengthened from the ones proposed.
The Government proposal is also opposed by the Finland Chamber of Commerce, which proposes extending the rehiring window to twelve months. For people working under a residence permit with less than two years of previous employment, the Chamber of Commerce proposes a rehiring window of six months.
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