Employer's rights and obligations

Credits: Markus Pentikäinen / Keksi

Finnish laws ensure impartiality and the rights of all parties.

Ensure that you are aware of your obligations and rights as an employer. The role of the employer emphasizes the obligations.

The general purpose of the employer’s obligations is to ensure proper working conditions. In international recruitment, it is essential to ensure that the foreign expert is aware of the practices of the Finnish labor market, their own obligations and rights, and matters such as salary, taxation, and employee benefits.

Employer’s and employee’s rights and obligations

As an employer, it is your responsibility to ensure good working conditions. Inform the international expert about the employer’s statutory obligations, such as equal treatment, non-discrimination, occupational safety, and sick pay.

This strengthens the expert’s sense of security and gives a good impression of the work community. Use language that the international expert can understand without doubt. Responsibility runs through the recruitment process – deepen your knowledge!

For example, in the health and social sector, the employer must take into account how the international export can acquire the qualifications required and find employment in a position corresponding to their education in their country of origin. Learn about the key aspects of international recruitment in the social and healthcare sector, or contact our expert service if needed

The employer has the right to direct and supervise the work during working hours. The employer decides where, how, when, and with what tools the work is performed. The right to supervise work must not violate good practices or legal provisions.

The employee is obliged to comply with the instructions and orders given by the employer, unless they are clearly inconsistent with the terms of the employment contract. For more information about the right to direct, see the website of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in Finland, for example.

Review the employee’s responsibilities carefully with the employee. These include, but are not limited to, the obligation to maintain business secrets, the prohibition of competing activities, and the reporting of occupational safety deficiencies.

The employee has the right to earn their living as they wish, which means that the employer cannot entirely prohibit them from doing other work. However, we recommend discussing the restrictions related to this. It is important for the employee to know that some types of residence permits restrict working. The employer is obliged to check that the employee is entitled to perform the work in question.

Credits: Markus Pentikäinen / Keksi

Employer’s reporting duty and retention of employment data

Under the Aliens Act, employers have notification and data retention obligations based on the employee’s nationality. Therefore, the employer must verify the employee’s nationality before the employment relationship begins.

The Finnish Immigration Service must be notified when the employment relationship of a non-EU/EEA national or their family members begins and ends. The workplace employee representative must be informed of the name of a non-EU/EEA national or their family members and the applicable collective agreement.

In addition, the employer is required to retain information on foreign employees in their service and the grounds for their right to work in such a way that the information is easily accessible for inspection.

By retaining this information, the employer can also monitor the validity of the employees’ right to work. The information must be retained for two years after the end of the employment relationship.

In contracting and subcontracting work, the obligation to retain information also applies to the contractor.

Finnish laws and official proceedings ensure the rights and equal treatment of all parties. As an employer, you can always turn to the relevant authority when in doubt.

You can find detailed instructions on data retention and notification obligations on the website of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Pay and employee benefits

In Finland, salaries are usually determined by collective agreements. If there is no collective agreement in the sector, the salary is agreed upon personally with the employee. The salary is determined by the Finnish wage level.

Explain to the international employee as early as possible how taxation and the social security system work in Finland and what kinds of payments will be withheld from the employee’s salary. Find out whether the employee is liable for social security or taxation in another country.

Mention any possible employee benefits and their effect on taxation already in the job interview. Benefits may have a positive impact on the candidate’s decision to accept the vacancy. At the same time, inform the employee about other benefits and rights existing in the Finnish labor market and society.

Credits: Marjaana Malkamäki / Keksi

Occupational health care

Labor legislation obliges the employer to arrange occupational health care even for one employee. The Finnish occupational health care practices differ from those of many other countries in terms of dental care and members of the family, among other things. Ensure that the occupational health care provider can serve its customers in English.

International recruitment guide

Check out our comprehensive International recruitment guide. The guide offers detailed information, instructions, and links for each step of the recruitment process.