13.3.2025 11:46

Press releases

Detailed content of the settlement for the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector

The collective bargaining negotiations for the commercial sector have been concluded, and the new collective agreement shall be valid from 1 February 2025 to 31 January 2028.

The final year of the three-year term can be terminated by either party with effect from 31 January 2027.

Pay

According to the pay solution, employees’ pay shall increase as follows.

Pay rises on 1 May 2025

Personal monthly salaries and hourly wages shall rise by 2.9%
The pay scales shall rise by 2.9%
The compensation paid to shop stewards and labour protection delegates shall rise once by 7.8%
The working time bonuses shall not increase
The compensation for Earn as You Learn trainees was increased to €425

Pay rises on 1 August 2026

Personal monthly salaries and hourly wages shall rise by 2.5%
The pay scales shall rise by 2.5%
The double night bonus for working on Sunday nights in logistics positions shall be abolished, and the night bonus paid for Sundays shall be the same as for other nights. The night bonus for logistics positions shall rise from €4.40 to €5.30. The change shall take place on 1 October 2026 – not at the same time as the pay rises. In other regards, the working time bonuses shall not increase.

Pay rises on 1 May 2027

Personal monthly salaries and hourly wages shall rise by 2.4%
The pay scales shall rise by 2.4%
The working time bonuses shall not increase

The Finnish Commerce Federation and PAM have agreed to trial a local wage component in 2026 and 2027.

Salary increase guidelines for 2025-2028

New pay scales from 1 May 2025 to 31 July 2026 New pay scales from 1 August 2026 to 30 April 2027 New pay scales from 1 May 2027 to 31 January 2028 Compensation for the shop stewards and labour market delegates as of 1 May 2025

Reform of the remuneration system for all professional groups as of 1 October 2026

New common job requirement levels for all professional groups

An agreement was made to reform the remuneration system as part of the collective agreement solution. The reformed remuneration system for logistics workers and clerical employees, which took effect on 1 January 2024, forms the basis for reforming the overall remuneration system.

The reform of the remuneration system for sales staff introduces new job requirement levels applying to all professional groups. The change shall take effect on 1 October 2026, and it will also replace the job requirement levels applying to logistics workers and clerical employees that are in force until that date. The new remuneration system and the single common job requirement level must be implemented for all professional groups by 1 October 2026.

However, the transition to the common job requirement level does not inherently require the job requirement levels of logistics workers or clerical employees to be reassessed unless their job descriptions change in a way that affects the demands of their work.

The labour market organisations shall publish more detailed application guidelines for the measures required by the reform of the remuneration system. The labour market organisations shall also hold joint webinars on the reform later in the spring of 2025.

The new job requirement level replaces the previous pay provisions for the Sales Assistant I and Sales Assistant II levels. In addition, the provisions on responsibility bonuses and shop manager’s stand-in bonuses shall be abolished by 1 October 2026. The application guidelines prepared jointly by the labour market organisations shall cover the effects of these changes on the employee’s remuneration in more depth.

New job requirement levels and pay scale groups determined according to job requirements:

Professional position -> pay scale group B
Demanding professional position -> pay scale group C
Special professional position -> pay scale group D
Expert position -> salary according to contract

The remuneration system shall be reformed as follows:

The existing pay scale groups shall be replaced with new job requirement levels that better identify the elements of more demanding work.
The relevant factors for determining the job requirement grade include, among others, the competence required for the position, the discretion exercised by the employee, the independence of the work, and the nature of interactions.
The names of the seniority levels shall be updated to reflect the actual length of service.

Changes concerning professional groups included in the remuneration system reform

The reform of the remuneration system removes the professional group protocol for sales staff and buyers in wholesale trading. A separate section applying to particularly demanding corporate sales and buying roles in wholesale trading was included in the provision on other professional groups.

The working conditions and salary terms of corporate sales and buying staff are determined according to the provisions on clerical workers. The salary terms in the collective agreement do not apply to employees working in particularly demanding sales and purchasing positions that are classified as expert roles in the job requirement levels listed in the wage annex when they are remunerated partly or entirely on commission.

In addition, the protocol for window dressers shall be removed, and a provision regarding visualists (formerly known as window dressers) was added to section 15 (formerly section 17). The provision states that the working conditions and remuneration of visualists are determined according to the provisions for sales staff. As such, visualists are covered by the general job requirement levels, and the previous job requirement levels for window dressers and particularly demanding window dressing work shall be removed.

More detailed instructions on the reform of the remuneration system will be published later. The labour market organisations shall also hold joint training sessions on the reform.

Changing the logic used to name the seniority levels as of 1 February 2025

The reform of the remuneration system includes updates to the logic used to name the seniority levels and the provisions on trainees in the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector. In the future, the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector shall refer to remuneration for the first year, during which a new employee may be paid 85% of the pay scale wage in the lowest pay scale group unless otherwise stated in the collective agreement provisions regarding training or work experience.

The years of service have been changed. In the future, the collective agreement shall refer to 2nd, 4th, 6th and 9th year employees instead of the previous 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 8th year employees. The previous provision on training periods has been replaced in the terminology with a new provision concerning the “first year”. This is a purely technical change, which does not affect the possibility of paying 85% of the pay scale for the first year (previously referred to as the training year). The change will also not affect the years of service of employees or their progression up the seniority levels.

Changes to the wording of the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector (taking effect on 1 February 2025 unless otherwise stated)

Provisions on working time and leave

General changes

Changes to the working time provisions of the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector have been prepared by a joint working group of the labour organisations on working time, as agreed in the last collective agreement solution. The working group examined changes to working time and questions of interpretation related to annual holidays.

The working time provisions in the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector have been amended to better reflect the 24/7 nature of the commercial sector. In general, the working time provisions in the collective agreement are no longer specific to a 24-hour period. In addition to the changes described below, one of the technical changes made to the collective agreement is that the wording refers to regular working hours during a work shift rather than regular daily working hours.

The working group divided the provisions in the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector concerning working time and leave as described below. The changes to the content of the provisions, other than their numbering, are presented below:

Section 6 Working time

Includes provisions on following up on working hours, the regular working time, the averaging system, and the work shift plan.

Section 7 Rest periods

Includes provisions on daily rest periods and coffee and meal breaks

Section 8 Time off

Includes provisions on the working week, the number of working days, weekly rest, time off and granting time off in an averaging period, annual leave, the placement of days off, combinations of days off, Sundays off, and days off on public holiday eves.

Section 9 Night work (now a dedicated section)

Includes provisions on night work. No changes to the content.

Section 10 Sunday work

Includes provisions on Sunday work. The provisions are unchanged.

Section 11 Other working time arrangements

Includes provisions on standby, emergency work, and flexible working hours, which have been consolidated in this section.

Section 12 Additional work and overtime

Includes provisions on additional work, overtime and increased pay. The provisions are unchanged.

Extending the time considered as attendance at work to all professional groups.

The time considered as attendance at work shall now apply to all professional groups. The time considered as attendance at work is taken as the time from the start of the shift and is no longer based on calendar days. In addition, shifts of less than five hours must be given in one continuous block.

The revised provision shall take effect at the beginning of the next averaging period and no earlier than 31 March 2025.

The Collective Agreement for the Commerce Sector continues to allow deviations from the time considered as attendance at work requirement up to five times per calendar year, if necessary due to a meeting or event arranged remotely by the employer.

In the future, a day off according to the collective agreement shall be an uninterrupted period of 24 hours off

The Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector now defines a day off as a continuous period of 24 hours. In other words, a day off according to the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector no longer needs to be a full calendar day off. This provision does not address the length of other types of leave. For example, annual leaves must still be granted as full calendar months.

During an averaging period, the employer must plan as many days off according to the definition in the collective agreement (hereinafter referred to as uninterrupted 24-hour breaks) as there are weeks in the period, in addition to the weekly rest period. A new obligation is imposed to strengthen the implementation of this provision. If some of the days off in accordance with the collective agreement are not scheduled during an averaging period, monetary compensation shall be paid for the days off that are not granted. The compensation shall be paid on the payday following the end of the averaging period. The cash compensation is calculated by dividing the employee’s agreed weekly working time in the employment contract by 5.

The obligation to pay cash compensation specifically concerns the obligation to schedule a sufficient number of uninterrupted 24-hour breaks. If an employee takes an additional work shift on a scheduled day off, there is no payment obligation.

The employer and the employee can make a one-off agreement for the employee to take paid time off in compensation for time off that was not yet scheduled. The time off shall be granted primarily within the same calendar year. However, it must not be granted by the end of April of the following calendar year. At the employee’s initiative, a written agreement can be made to grant time off by the end of the following calendar year.

The revised provision shall take effect at the beginning of the next averaging period and no earlier than 31 March 2025.

Changes to consecutive days off

The current provisions on consecutive days off shall be replaced by a new provision concerning combinations of days off. In the future, combinations of days off shall be divided into two categories: long time off at weekends and other combinations of days off.

Long time off at a weekend refers to time off that starts no later than 10 pm on a Friday and ends no earlier than 6 am on a Monday. Long time off at a weekend must last for an uninterrupted period of at least 59 hours. The employee must be given at least seven periods of long time off at weekends in a calendar year.

Other combinations of days off are any continuous periods of time off at any time during the week lasting at least 59 hours. The employee must be given at least eight other combinations of days off in a calendar year.

A total of 15 combinations of days off should therefore be given in the future. In the future, annual holidays shall not be taken into account when assessing whether combinations of days off have been granted.

The previous collective agreement provision required employees to be given at least 20 combinations of consecutive days off in a calendar year. However, annual holidays could previously be taken into account in this calculation. Therefore, in practice, there have been no changes to the numbers (except for new employees who have not yet accrued annual holidays).

It is possible to deviate from the rules concerning combinations of days off if there are justified reasons to do so. Justified grounds may include essential arrangements related to the company’s production or service operations in order to serve the company’s customers or other corresponding operational grounds, such as a regular shift rotation. The revised provision shall take effect at the beginning of the next averaging period and no earlier than 31 March 2025. The previous collective agreement provision shall apply in the transition year of 2025 along with the weekend leave already granted on that basis.

Clarifying the interpretation of the provision on days off on public holiday eves

The provision on days off on public holiday eves in the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector has raised questions of interpretation when a shift begins before the eve of a public holiday but continues past midnight into the public holiday eve. In these situations, a new clarifying provision was added to the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector concerning shifts spanning two days and the treatment of days off on public holiday eves.

For work shifts that span two days, the employee is deemed to have received a day off on a public holiday eve if they are also off work on the public holiday after the eve. The next shift can start no earlier than 6 am on the day after the public holiday following the eve.

Example: An employee’s shift is scheduled from 10 pm to 6 am, beginning on the night before Christmas Eve. The employee’s next shift starts at 6 am on 26 December. Although the employee’s shift ends at 6 am on Christmas Eve, the employee is deemed to have received a day off on a public holiday eve because they have all of Christmas Day off work.

The regulation concerning days off on public holiday eves remains unchanged in other respects.

Possibility to reach other agreements on compensation for weekday public holidays

For companies using the weekday public holiday system, an exception was agreed upon for the reduction in working time during weeks containing weekday public holidays. If a full-time employee’s working hours are reduced on a day other than an official weekday public holiday and the employee is not covered by the averaging system, the employee and employer may reach a one-off agreement that no double pay shall be paid for work performed on a public holiday falling between Monday and Friday (section 10, subsection 3). When an agreement is made to transfer a day off for a weekday public holiday, the day off shall be arranged in connection with weekend days off.

Example: An employer and a full-time employee may agree that the employee works from Monday to Thursday in the week that includes Ascension Day (which falls on a Thursday). The employee is off from Friday to Sunday. The employee shall be paid the normal wage, and no double pay shall be given for working on the public holiday (Ascension Day). The employee thus gets a longer continuous break.

Changes to the collective agreement regarding annual holidays

Clarity on the value of annual holidays in terms of working hours and new provisions on granting days off in incomplete annual holiday weeks

A provision was included in the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector regarding the working hours that fall under annual holidays. The value in terms of working hours of a full week of annual holiday from Monday to Saturday is the weekly working time stated in the employment contract. The calculation method is the same, even if the employer uses a working time averaging system. Therefore, for a full-time employee, a full week of annual holiday is worth 37.5 hours of working time.

The value of one day of annual holiday in terms of working hours is calculated as the weekly working time agreed in the employment contract divided by five. Therefore, for a full-time employee, one day of annual holiday is worth 7.5 hours of working time.

The collective agreement clarified the placement of days off in weeks with reduced working hours. If an employee starts their holiday on a day between Monday and Friday, there is no obligation to grant days off in that week. Conversely, if the annual holiday starts on a Saturday, the employee must be given at least one normal day off.

Similarly, if the holiday ends:

on a Monday, the employee must be given at least 2 days off during that week (or during the current averaging period).
on a Tuesday, the employee must be given at least 1 day off during that week (or during the current averaging period).
on a Wednesday or later, no days off need to be given at all that week.

If an employee has a fixed day off, it shall still be observed.

The revised provisions shall take effect at the start of the next averaging period and no earlier than 5 May 2025.

Employees’ training opportunities were strengthened by a provision on holiday bonus leave

The collective agreement gained a new provision entitling employees to exchange holiday bonuses for time off to develop their skills. In certain situations, an employee has a subjective right to exchange some or all of their holiday bonus for a corresponding amount of paid leave. The leave must be used for self-motivated training that enhances their skills based on the study leave entitlement under the applicable revision of the Study Leave Act or a similar entitlement, provided that converting the holiday bonus into time off does not cause significant disruption to the company.

The employee must submit the request as early as possible. The employer is entitled to request a justified explanation of how the employee intends to use their holiday bonus leave. The revised provision shall take effect at the beginning of the next averaging period and no earlier than 5 May 2025.

Other agreements

Possibility to agree on longer notice periods for more demanding positions

With the reform of the remuneration system, more demanding roles will be better recognised in the commercial sector. Following this, the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector shall allow different notice periods to be agreed upon for special professional positions and professional expert positions. Both parties may agree on a two-month notice period for these roles. The employer must comply with this even if the notice period observed by the employer according to the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector is longer.

Clarification of the obligation to hear the employee

When considering terminating an employment relationship on grounds related to the employee’s person, the employee must be given the opportunity to be heard regarding the reasons for terminating the employment contract. The hearing must be arranged in such a way that the employee has reasonable time to prepare for the hearing, sufficient information on the matters that form the basis for decision-making, and a real opportunity to present their own position on the matter.

The employer must inform the employee of the purpose of the hearing and the right to have an assistant at the hearing. At the employee’s request, the shop steward can act as the assistant. If no shop steward has been elected, a representative from a trade union or professional association can act as the assistant at the employee’s request.

At the hearing, the employer shall evaluate whether the prerequisites exist for continuing the employment relationship.

The clarification to the collective agreement regarding the obligation to hear the employee does not add to the consultation obligations imposed on employers by the Employment Contracts Act. The purpose of the provision is to clarify the practices related to hearings.

Changes to the procedure for temporary care leave

In the future, if a child under 10 years old falls ill, the precondition for the payment of wages shall be a self-reporting procedure. For a justified reason, the employer may, however, require a certificate issued by a healthcare professional as a condition of paying wages. A justified reason may be, for example, the suspected abuse of the right to absence based on the employee’s previous conduct or ambiguous or vague explanations. The employer must discuss the justified reason with the employee if the employer requires the certificate or clarification referred to in the provision. If there is a justified reason as referred to in the provision and the employee fails to provide the required documentation, the absence shall be unpaid.

Right to attend examinations related to fertility treatments without pay

An employee is entitled to unpaid leave when attending an examination or procedure related to fertility treatment, provided that the visit is arranged in a way that avoids the unnecessary loss of working time. The employee must report their visit as early as possible.

The provision does not affect any sick leave that may arise from the visit and the payment of wages for it. These matters shall be assessed in accordance with the provision of the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector on pay for periods of sick leave.

“Examinations or procedures related to fertility treatment” refers to medical examinations or procedures linked to treatments. The examination or procedure can be conducted by a healthcare professional.

“Absence” refers to the visit and any possible travel time.

Transparency of technological systems and the right to disengage from work

A new provision on the transparency of the employer’s technological systems and the employee’s right to disengage from work has been added to the labour protection cooperation agreement. As part of labour protection cooperation, the labour protection parties shall address the technological systems available to the employer and the employees’ access to information and their ability to influence these. The labour protection parties shall monitor and assess the use of technological systems in the workplace and take action as necessary to ensure the employee’s right to disengage from work.

Working group on local agreements in the workplace

A new option for local agreements in the workplace was added to the Collective Agreement for the Commercial Sector. A working group on local agreements can be established in the workplace, and the employees shall be entitled to appoint two representatives to the working group from among their number. If a shop steward has already been elected in the workplace, the establishment of the working group must be agreed upon between the employer and the shop steward.

The representatives in the working group are authorised to make local agreements in the workplace with the employer’s representative on behalf of the employees. The representatives do not have any other rights or special protections due to their membership, but the employer must promote the members’ competences and knowledge of the operating environment in the workplace to the extent necessary for them to handle their tasks.

Members of the Delegate Council and Executive Board of PAM

The members of Service Union United PAM’s Executive Board, Delegate Council, sectoral commission and committee shall have the opportunity to attend meetings of the said bodies and the union assembly unless a weighty reason related to work arrangements prevents them from attending. The employee should notify the employer of their participation, if possible before the work shift plan is drawn up for the period in which the meeting occurs, or as soon as possible thereafter. The employee must provide an appropriate account of the time required for attendance.

Activities of working groups during the upcoming collective agreement period

The Finnish Commerce Federation and PAM agreed to continue the activities of the following existing working groups and other forms of cooperation:

Working group on the remuneration system
Training and education working group
Monitoring group on equality in the commercial sector
Round table on the future of commerce
Continuation of the occupational wellbeing project for retail supervisors

The Finnish Commerce Federation and PAM also agreed on the following new working groups:

Logistics working group
Working group on part-time work in the commercial sector

The Earn as You Learn compensation for 2025, 2026, and 2027 shall be €425. As part of the collective bargaining process, the parties agreed that Earn as You Learn trainees can be paid their final wages on the company’s normal payday.

Supervisors

The salaries of retail and logistics supervisors shall increase as follows:

2.9% on 1 May 2025
2.5% on 1 August 2026
2.4% on 1 May 2027

Some clarifications were agreed upon for the Collective Agreement for Retail Supervisors. The structure of the collective agreement was clarified with respect to the discussion obligations, and the discussion themes highlighted administrative supervisory work and the potential stress factors arising from supervisors being on call.

In the future, retail and logistics supervisors shall be able to agree on a two-month notice period.