Collective agreement for universities expired - No impact on everyday work

The negotiating parties have had discussions on the conditions of the new collective agreement in active and constructive co-operation since autumn 2017.

The employer party is represented by the Association of Finnish Independent Education Employers, while the other negotiating parties are the following three organisations of salaried employees: Negotiation Organisation for Public Sector Professionals JUKO, Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors JHL, and Federation of Salaried Employees Pardia. The negotiations have been preceded by joint preparatory work done in working groups during the agreement period. Among other matters, the working groups have been preparing a salary system reform.

The state’s savings measures have affected all universities and led to a decrease in their basic funding. This will pose some challenges also for the parties involved in the collective agreement negotiations. In particular, the economic situation of the universities will have an effect on the negotiations regarding the level of salary increases. 

 It is important to develop the conditions of the staff’s employment relationship as a whole. One of the most important goals of the employer party has been to simplify the salary system. Over the years, we have received feedback from our personnel concerning the current system, which is seen as too stiff and bureaucratic and not considerate of the needs of the employees or the university. That is why our main goal is to make the current system more flexible by simplifying the evaluation of the employee’s personal performance. 

We hope that the negotiations arrive at a solution that pleases all parties as soon as possible. We will update you with more information on the negotiations on the first week of February.

Even though the validity period of the collective agreement has ended, Aalto University will comply with the conditions of the previous collective agreement also during the time with no valid agreement. Therefore, the expiration of the collective agreement will have no direct impact on the everyday work of the employees or the university in general.

Riitta Silvennoinen
Chief Human Resources Officer, Aalto University