;)
At the Congress of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), The LO President Ms. Wanja Lundby-Wedin, was elected president of the ETUC the 22:nd of May 2007. She will thus become the
first women president of the ETUC as well as the first ETUC president from Sweden. LO became member of the ETUC when the organisation was founded in l973, and today ETUC organizes trade union
organizations representing 60 million blue-collar workers, white-collar workers and university graduates in 35 countries.
After having been elected, Wanja Lundby-Wedin gave a speech of thanks in which she accentuated the need of a strong European trade union organisation which can intensify the welfare development
in Europe.
At the same time, she questioned those who are of the opinion that to develop Europe economically, the welfare needs to be less generous, and she underlined that solid welfare systems
facilitate the conversion to a more competitive economy.
- Everybody seems to praise flexicurity, but not everybody has accepted that this implies a labour market in which there is a balance between flexicurity and security. But without security, we
will never accept flexicurity. If that will be the case, people will hang on to the jobs available as long as they can, and the pace of conversion will slow down. This is not positive to the
European economy but it is typical. The price for a stronger European economy cannot be paid by the employees who will be periodically jobless. We must all, jointly, pay our share of the
profits as well as the costs of a more competitive economy in Europe.
Wanja Lundby-Wedin was also critical to the inadequate migration and refugee policy of the European Union and underlined the importance of the union’s commitment to these issues.
- Today many people live in Europe without residence permits. They are forced to live on the fringe of society where they have no protection and can easily be exploited. The union ought to find
ways of protecting them, and possibly organize the. Then, not only the conditions of these people would be improved, but also the economy of the black informal sector, which these people have
to rely on in order to survive, would be dented.
27 mai 2007
7
27
/05
/mai
/2007
08:49
Forte croissance du nombre de salariés des Entreprises finlandaises à l'étranger en 10 ans. Une croissance de 150% entre 1996 et 2005, de 137 000 à 350 000 employés selon les statistiques de la
Banque de Finlande.
La principale motivation de cette externalisation ou délocalisation de la production n'est pas l'attrait des pays à bas coût de production qui a une incidence forte sur les importations de la Finlande.
Cette externalisation résulte d'une volonté de se rapprocher des marchés extérieurs afin de rendre plus acceptable la diffusion de produits d'origine finlandaise (notamment en Suède, aux Etats-Unis et dans les pays européens).
Rapid growth in ten years:
Finnish companies have 350,000 employees outside of Finland
Helsinki
The top 50 list of Finnish companies (their global number of employees as the criteria) published by the economic weekly Talouselämä (2) contains data on the provision of their personnel working abroad. The list concerns the average situation in 2006.
Of the Finnish companies that were significant employers outside of Finland one may form five, roughly equally large groups. They were as follows.
1. Nokia and its subcontractors
Changes, connected with the rise of Nokia which went on to become the world's number one mobile telephone producer, play an important but not a decisive role in the growth of personnel abroad. Last year, Nokia's global personnel totalled 65,300 employees. Over 41,100 of them worked outside of Finland.
In 2006, Nokia's three major Finnish based subcontractors Elcoteq, Perlos and Salcomp had 29,100 employees in their foreign units and subsidiaries. In Finland they had no more than 2,500 employees, which represented only a fraction of their domestic personnel just a few years ago.
And so Nokia with its Finnish based subcontractors represented approximately a fifth of the Finnish companies' personnel working outside of Finland.
2. Forest industry
Another fifth was formed by the forest industry giants Stora Enso,
UPM-Kymmene and Metsäliitto, all three having their main offices in Finland. In 2006, they had in their foreign units 67,400 employees. A fourth company Ahlström (specialty papers) may be added to this second group. In 2006, Ahlström had 4,900 employees outside of Finland.
3.Mechanical engineering
The third fifth can be identified in the mechanical engineering industry.
There, Kone (elevators), Metso (paper machines, mineral processing
equipments), Wärtsilä (diesel engines), Konecranes (cranes) and Cargotec (cargo handling solutions) had 65,000 employees in their branches and subsidiaries abroad.
4. Other manufacturing industries
A mixture of other manufacturing companies sums up the fourth group. Last year following ten companies, all based in Finland, had altogether 64,800 employees abroad: Huhtamäki (packaging), Fazer (bakery products, confectionery), Kemira (chemicals), Amer Sports (sports equipments), Atria (food), Fortum (power generation and distribution), Rautaruukki (steel), Outokumpu (stainless steel), Luvata (copper products) and Consolis (prefabricated concrete products).
5. Services, consulting, retailing
The remaining fifth covered various service providers, such as the construction industry companies YIT and Lemminkäinen, SanomaWSOY (media), Tieto-Enator (IT service provider), retailers Kesko, Stockmann and SOK, Sampo (insurance business), Eltel Networks (design, construction and maintenance of electrical and telecommunications networks) and Pöyry, the world's leading forest industry consulting firm.
According to Talouselämä, in 2006, these ten companies had 63,600 employees in their foreign subsidiaries and branches.
Low labour costs have not been the most important factor
The motivation to expand personnel abroad has varied. In many businesses it is not possible to compete without having production units in several countries or on several continents. It means having production near the major markets and utilising strengths of different countries.
The Finnish trade union movement has mostly focused on cases where jobs have been removed from Finland to low pay countries. However, in most cases concerning Finnish investment abroad lower labour costs have not been among the major motives.
This can be concluded from Bank of Finland statistics (1) on the number of employees for foreign subsidiaries and branches of companies resident in Finland by country. The table below presents the top 20 countries in 2005. 's low pay countries, China has attracted direct investment from Finland primarily because of its vast and rapidly expanding markets.
Estonia's case is different from China. To some degree, direct investments in Estonia have been made to avail or take advantage of its low labour costs. This was the motivation, for example, of Nokia's subcontractor Elcoteq which has been for many years been Estonia's largest exporter. In part has Finnish expansion into Estonia been motivated by Estonian markets.
Direct investments in Russia, have primarily been motivated by Russian
markets. The vast forest resources have also attracted Finnish capital. Only in a few minor cases have Russia's low labour costs been the decisive factor in Finnish investment in Russia.
Hungary became the favourite country of Nokia and a few
other Finnish companies several years ago for their productive investments in Central and Eastern Europe. Low labour costs and social stability were Hungary's assets among the former socialist countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
Direct investments in Poland have been motivated both by Poland's domestic markets and its low labour costs.
In Latin America, Brazil has long time been the base of Finnish companies. There, Kone, Stora Enso and Nokia belong to the most important Finnish employers. The speciality has been Pöyry's sizeable office that consults forest industries in the region.
The elevator company Kone and diesel engine manufacturer Wärtsilä have already seen many years of production in India. The units have targeted both India's and larger Asian markets. Recently Nokia opened its first mobile telephone factory in India, followed by its major subcontractors. They produce primarily for the rapidly expanding Indian market.
Direct investments in Mexico include both Nokia's and its subcontractors' factories. In these investments, the low pay factor plays a role.
All in all, the low pay level of developing countries and of countries in transition is more reflected in Finnish imports than in employment figures of Finnish companies' foreign subsidiaries and branches. In this, textile, garment and shoe industries offer the best example. In the last three decades they have lost tens of thousands of jobs as a result of the low labour cost countries' better competitive ability. That is verified in the Finnish import statistics, not in the number of employees Finnish companies have abroad.
Major sources: (excel)
La principale motivation de cette externalisation ou délocalisation de la production n'est pas l'attrait des pays à bas coût de production qui a une incidence forte sur les importations de la Finlande.
Cette externalisation résulte d'une volonté de se rapprocher des marchés extérieurs afin de rendre plus acceptable la diffusion de produits d'origine finlandaise (notamment en Suède, aux Etats-Unis et dans les pays européens).
Rapid growth in ten years:
Finnish companies have 350,000 employees outside of Finland
Helsinki
| Sweden | 68,217 |
| United States | 37,477 |
| Germany | 33,716 |
| China | 21,490 |
| Estonia | 16,446 |
| Russia | 15,487 |
| United Kingdom | 15,076 |
| Netherlands | 14,308 |
| France | 14,099 |
| Norway | 13,778 |
| Hungary | 9,797 |
| Poland | 8,543 |
| Italy | 6,515 |
| Denmark | 6,437 |
| Brazil | 6,224 |
| Austria | 5,639 |
| Canada | 5,328 |
| India | 4,874 |
| Lithuania | 4,483 |
| Mexico | 3,656 |
Of the table
-
(1) Bank of
Finland: Direct investment, long-time series
-
(2) Pekka Lähteenmäki: Tekijät pitää hakea muualta, Talouselämä 4.5.2007
The top 50 list of Finnish companies (their global number of employees as the criteria) published by the economic weekly Talouselämä (2) contains data on the provision of their personnel working abroad. The list concerns the average situation in 2006.
Of the Finnish companies that were significant employers outside of Finland one may form five, roughly equally large groups. They were as follows.
1. Nokia and its subcontractors
Changes, connected with the rise of Nokia which went on to become the world's number one mobile telephone producer, play an important but not a decisive role in the growth of personnel abroad. Last year, Nokia's global personnel totalled 65,300 employees. Over 41,100 of them worked outside of Finland.
In 2006, Nokia's three major Finnish based subcontractors Elcoteq, Perlos and Salcomp had 29,100 employees in their foreign units and subsidiaries. In Finland they had no more than 2,500 employees, which represented only a fraction of their domestic personnel just a few years ago.
And so Nokia with its Finnish based subcontractors represented approximately a fifth of the Finnish companies' personnel working outside of Finland.
2. Forest industry
Another fifth was formed by the forest industry giants Stora Enso,
UPM-Kymmene and Metsäliitto, all three having their main offices in Finland. In 2006, they had in their foreign units 67,400 employees. A fourth company Ahlström (specialty papers) may be added to this second group. In 2006, Ahlström had 4,900 employees outside of Finland.
3.Mechanical engineering
The third fifth can be identified in the mechanical engineering industry.
There, Kone (elevators), Metso (paper machines, mineral processing
equipments), Wärtsilä (diesel engines), Konecranes (cranes) and Cargotec (cargo handling solutions) had 65,000 employees in their branches and subsidiaries abroad.
4. Other manufacturing industries
A mixture of other manufacturing companies sums up the fourth group. Last year following ten companies, all based in Finland, had altogether 64,800 employees abroad: Huhtamäki (packaging), Fazer (bakery products, confectionery), Kemira (chemicals), Amer Sports (sports equipments), Atria (food), Fortum (power generation and distribution), Rautaruukki (steel), Outokumpu (stainless steel), Luvata (copper products) and Consolis (prefabricated concrete products).
5. Services, consulting, retailing
The remaining fifth covered various service providers, such as the construction industry companies YIT and Lemminkäinen, SanomaWSOY (media), Tieto-Enator (IT service provider), retailers Kesko, Stockmann and SOK, Sampo (insurance business), Eltel Networks (design, construction and maintenance of electrical and telecommunications networks) and Pöyry, the world's leading forest industry consulting firm.
According to Talouselämä, in 2006, these ten companies had 63,600 employees in their foreign subsidiaries and branches.
Low labour costs have not been the most important factor
The motivation to expand personnel abroad has varied. In many businesses it is not possible to compete without having production units in several countries or on several continents. It means having production near the major markets and utilising strengths of different countries.
The Finnish trade union movement has mostly focused on cases where jobs have been removed from Finland to low pay countries. However, in most cases concerning Finnish investment abroad lower labour costs have not been among the major motives.
This can be concluded from Bank of Finland statistics (1) on the number of employees for foreign subsidiaries and branches of companies resident in Finland by country. The table below presents the top 20 countries in 2005. 's low pay countries, China has attracted direct investment from Finland primarily because of its vast and rapidly expanding markets.
Estonia's case is different from China. To some degree, direct investments in Estonia have been made to avail or take advantage of its low labour costs. This was the motivation, for example, of Nokia's subcontractor Elcoteq which has been for many years been Estonia's largest exporter. In part has Finnish expansion into Estonia been motivated by Estonian markets.
Direct investments in Russia, have primarily been motivated by Russian
markets. The vast forest resources have also attracted Finnish capital. Only in a few minor cases have Russia's low labour costs been the decisive factor in Finnish investment in Russia.
Hungary became the favourite country of Nokia and a few
other Finnish companies several years ago for their productive investments in Central and Eastern Europe. Low labour costs and social stability were Hungary's assets among the former socialist countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
Direct investments in Poland have been motivated both by Poland's domestic markets and its low labour costs.
In Latin America, Brazil has long time been the base of Finnish companies. There, Kone, Stora Enso and Nokia belong to the most important Finnish employers. The speciality has been Pöyry's sizeable office that consults forest industries in the region.
The elevator company Kone and diesel engine manufacturer Wärtsilä have already seen many years of production in India. The units have targeted both India's and larger Asian markets. Recently Nokia opened its first mobile telephone factory in India, followed by its major subcontractors. They produce primarily for the rapidly expanding Indian market.
Direct investments in Mexico include both Nokia's and its subcontractors' factories. In these investments, the low pay factor plays a role.
All in all, the low pay level of developing countries and of countries in transition is more reflected in Finnish imports than in employment figures of Finnish companies' foreign subsidiaries and branches. In this, textile, garment and shoe industries offer the best example. In the last three decades they have lost tens of thousands of jobs as a result of the low labour cost countries' better competitive ability. That is verified in the Finnish import statistics, not in the number of employees Finnish companies have abroad.
Major sources: (excel)
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