työläitä

Työläitä is the plural form of the Finnish noun työläinen, meaning workers or the working class. It is used to refer to people engaged in wage labor. In standard Finnish, the nominative plural is työläiset, while työläitä is used in particular grammatical cases, such as the partitive or certain object forms.

Historically, the Finnish working class emerged with industrialization in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term has been central in sociological and political discussions about wages, working conditions, and class relations, and it became a focal point of discussions on democracy, rights, and social policy in modern Finland.

The työläitä, as a concept, has been closely linked to the Finnish labor movement (työväenliike) and to trade unions that organized workers across sectors. The movement influenced the development of collective bargaining, labor legislation, and the welfare state, especially during the 20th century, when Finland expanded social protection and established broad-based labor rights.

In contemporary Finland, the working class remains diverse, spanning manufacturing, services, care work, and logistics. The term is frequently used in academic discussions of socioeconomic status and in political and union discourse about wages, working conditions, and social protection. It is also contrasted with owners, managers, and professionals in analyses of class structure and income distribution.

See also: työläiset, työväenliike, työmarkkinat, sosiaaliturva.