In 2007 the Finnish employers’ confederation withdrew from
the comprehensive tripartite, multi-sector bargaining system, a step which had
been taken by the Swedish employers’ federation 17 years earlier. In Sweden, it
signalled to some extent the demise of the so-called Swedish model. In Finland,
by contrast, Finnish employers organised in EK and here especially
the Federation
of Finnish Technology Industries, which represents
Finnish export companies, did not succeed in enforcing company level bargaining
and, thus, more flexibility in wage structures. Instead, a sectoral collective
bargaining system, giving sectoral trade unions significant power, was
established. How can we understand this failure in comparison to the more
successful attack of the Swedish employers in the 1990s? In this blog post, I will argue
that the far lower degree of transnationalization of production in Finland
explains to some extent why the attack on the established class compromise
happened much later than in Sweden and has been less successful. Nevertheless, I will also conclude that trade unions must remain vigilant in their protection of the welfare state as further attacks are likely.