Yhteistoimintalaki

Yhteistoimintalaki, or the Co-operation Act, is a Finnish law governing the cooperation between employers and employees within undertakings. Its central aim is to promote constructive dialogue, timely information, and consideration of personnel impacts in planning and change processes.

The act applies to organisations and undertakings where employees have representation, whether through elected personnel representatives or unions. It requires employers to inform and consult with these representatives before decisions or measures that may significantly affect personnel or working conditions.

Key obligations include an information duty and a consultation duty. The information duty obliges the employer to provide adequate, timely information about planned measures. The consultation duty requires good-faith negotiations, presenting possible alternatives, and seeking ways to mitigate adverse effects. Employees’ representatives have the right to ask questions and request further information.

Areas covered include major organizational changes, production or plant changes, restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, outsourcing or subcontracting, changes in terms and conditions of employment, and redundancies. The act seeks to create space for retraining, redeployment, and other measures to avoid or minimize dismissals.

Procedurally, cooperation negotiations are intended to take place before final decisions are made, and outcomes are documented in agreements or minutes. If disputes arise, they may be addressed through statutory dispute-resolution channels, often with involvement from unions or representatives.

Relation to other laws: the act complements collective agreements and other Finnish labour statutes, and may be elaborated by sector-specific agreements.