At the top of the list, Finland struggles to find foreign workers to ease its demographic crisis and solve its labor shortage, one of the most serious in Europe.
“It is now widely recognized that we need an impressive number of people … to help cover the costs of the aging generation,” Saku Tihveräinen, a talent scout for the agency Talented Solutions, told AFP.
Most Western countries are facing demographic aging, but few feel its effect like this Scandinavian country of 5.5 million people, with the largest shortage of skilled workers within the OECD.
Finland has four people over 65 for every ten people of working age. By 2030, this ratio will rise to one in two, putting it only behind Japan globally.
Job offers in Finland for foreigners
The government estimates that it needs a positive migration balance of 20,000 to 30,000 people each year — twice as much as now — to maintain its public services and geriatric care at its level of excellence and to compensate for the impending deficit in the pension system.
After years of inertia, business and government “are at a tipping point and they recognize the problem,” says Charles Mathies.
In charge of education and migration research at the Academy of Finland, Mathies is one of the experts consulted for the government’s “Talent Boost” program, launched four years ago to increase the country’s job attractiveness.
Among the professionals sought, are Spanish health personnel, Slovak metallurgists, computer scientists or Russian, Indian or Filipino maritime experts.
Despite its good public services and its low level of crime and inequality, Finland suffers to attract foreign talent due to the difficulty of its language, its harsh climate and also a certain closure in its business fabric.
Ahmed (name changed) came to the country for family reasons and, despite having long experience in the thriving industry of digital product design, he could not find a job.
“There has never been a lack of employment, it is a mentality problem,” says the 42-year-old Briton who, while looking for work in Finland, received offers from Norway, Qatar, the United Kingdom or Germany.
Finally he chose to work in the German city of Düsseldorf, where he comes and goes every week from Helsinki.
“A large number of Finnish companies and organizations are very fond of using Finnish, and very fluent Finnish,” says Saku Tihveräinen.
But “as the lack of manpower worsens, we see companies looking for other solutions,” added this headhunter.
For example, he cites the case of an expanding technology factory that managed to hire some 2,000 people in six months after introducing English as a working language.
At the same time, the mayor of Helsinki, Jan Vapaavuori, mobilized large communication companies to improve the attractiveness and visibility of the city.
But “as the lack of manpower worsens, we see companies looking for other solutions,” added this headhunter.
For example, he cites the case of an expanding technology factory that managed to hire some 2,000 people in six months after introducing English as a working language.
At the same time, the mayor of Helsinki, Jan Vapaavuori, mobilized large communication companies to improve the attractiveness and visibility of the city.
Convincing singles is not a big problem, but attracting couples and families is difficult because “spouses always have enormous problems finding a decent job,” he explains.
Even so, the mayor is confident in Asian immigration and the change in priorities caused by the pandemic, which, according to him, reinforced his city’s values: “safe, functional, reliable and predictable.”
How to process a work visa in Finland?
People who wish to work in Finland, but are not from a European Union or Nordic country, before arriving in this country.
According to the Finnish authorities, not all jobs will require a worker residence permit. You can check what type of residence permit you will need.
For example, the following workers need a worker residence permit: cooks, cleaners, babysitters, and domestic workers.
The Immigration Office decides whether to grant you a residence permit. Partial decisions of the Office of Employment and Labor Activities are also required for the permit.
Workers must apply for this permit when they go to Finland to work for a Finnish employer or another employer operating in Finland and have signed an employment contract or accepted a binding job offer.
The authorization of the residence permit for an employed person will be related to the labor market tests, which means that the employer must establish whether there is labor available within a reasonable time in Finland or within the European Union for work in question.
The general requirements to enter Finland before applying for the residence permit, the interested parties must have a valid passport, not have been punished to enter, not be a danger to public order and security, not be a danger to the public health and not be a danger to Finland’s foreign relations.
In addition, they must have a signed employment contract or a job offer. In the case of a job in the health care or welfare sector, the person must have authorization to practice the profession.
You cannot start working until you have a residence permit. You can only work in the field to which the work performed belongs, although you can have several jobs as long as they belong to the same professional field.
The documents needed to apply for a work permit are a valid passport, a passport-size photograph with the characteristics listed in this link, a color copy of the passport information page and of all the pages of the passport where there are notes. , a document that shows legal residence in the country from where the application is made and.
To apply for a residence permit to work in Finland, through paid employment for as long as the residence permit is valid. The minimum wage is reviewed annually.
Quality of life in Finland
Despite long winters and a reputation for being unrepresentative and lonely, Finland has a high standard of living, well-functioning public services, many forests and lakes, and has very positive rates of solidarity and the fight against poverty. poverty and inequality.
Finland is also one of the developed countries with the best balance against COVID-19, as the country has reached high levels “in mutual trust measures that have helped protect lives during the pandemic,” the World Happiness Report 2021, a report prepared by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, a United Nations initiative.
Finland achieves a score of 7.84 out of 10.
For a decade, the European Nordic countries have consistently ranked first in this ranking: before Finland, Norway was the leader in happiness in 2017 and Denmark held that first place for a long time.
With information from AFP
