Press releases

The employer associations, the Finnish Commerce Federation, the Chemical Industry Federation of Finland, Service Sector Employers Palta, Technology Industry Employers of Finland and Local Government and County Employers KT, have sent today an invitation to employee unions to negotiate the development of an export-driven labour market model. At the same time, they have been asked to appoint representatives from their member organisations for the negotiations starting between sector-specific unions. The Office for the Government as Employer has also been invited to the negotiations which are scheduled to start on Friday 24 November at 9:30 a.m.

The significance of November in Christmas commerce has increased year by year, but December is still the most important sales month of the season and of the whole year in retail trade. November is the big season for e-commerce, mainly due to the long-running Black Friday campaigns, but December is the highlight for physical stores. This year, the sales expectations for Christmas commerce are more positive than last year.

Commerce is one of the largest sectors of business life and the Finnish economy, both as an employer, a creator of economic growth and a payer of taxes. With its daily operations and investments, commerce also creates jobs and well-being indirectly through various other sectors in Finland. Commerce pays a considerable share of corporate taxes.

The Finnish Commerce Federation estimates that the total market size of circular trade in Finland is approximately EUR 895 million. The largest segment of circular trade, C2C e-commerce, has almost doubled since 2015. The growth of peer trading also brings new business opportunities for Finnish commerce businesses. According to the Finnish Commerce Federation, RDI funding directed at commerce businesses would develop circular economy ecosystems and innovations and thus accelerate the green transition even further.

The retail sector sales volume* will decrease by around 3.5 per cent this year, and the growth next year will be modest. Commerce investments are also declining. In 2023–2024, the number of people employed in the retail sector will decrease by a total of nearly 4 per cent from 2022. In its labour market reforms, the Government also needs to take into account the employment in consumer services.