Since no agreement has been found in a labor dispute in the municipal sector, a strike between May 3 and 9 will begin on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, a strike of municipal sector employees involving over 81,000 people in ten different municipalities—arranged by the labor organizations of JUKO, JHL and Jyty—is set to begin in Helsinki, Vantaa, Espoo, Kauniainen, Turku, Tampere, Jyväskylä, Kuopio, Oulu and Rovaniemi. The strike will continue until Monday, May 9.
In a nutshell, the unions demand a solution that lifts low-pay employees from the pay gap in the municipal sector.
“Everyone has during their lifetime used services produced by municipal employees, and everyone regards them as important. It is completely obvious that the employees producing these services for us deserve significant pay raises and a level of income they can live on,” Jonna Voima, the president of Jyty, said in a statement.
The strike affects education, culture and leisure services in particular, but also social services and health care.
During the strike, basic education is suspended altogether. Many of the daycare centers in the aforementioned municipalities will also be closed.
Emergency services and urgent care provided by primary health stations and oral health care locations are excluded from the strike, so these services would continue to function normally.
Impacts on sports and leisure in Helsinki region
Many libraries in Helsinki (excluding the self-service libraries in the districts of Herttoniemi, Laajasalo and Viikki), cultural centers (Annantalo, Caisa, Malmitalo, Maunula House, Kanneltalo, Savoy Theatre, Stoa, Vuosaari House), and museums (Helsinki Art Museum HAM, Helsinki City Museum, Villa Hakasalmi, Worker Housing Museum and Tram Museum), as well as youth centers and indoor sports facilities, are closed.
Impacts on sports and leisure in Turku
All the libraries are closed, and the library buses do not travel. Independent use is not possible in the nearby libraries.
Tourism services are reduced.
The strike restricts the activities of the museums; most are closed.
Almost all sports venues and customer service for sports services are closed.
More info here.
Impacts on sports and leisure in Tampere
Some indoor sports facilities, outdoor sports facilities and indoor swimming pools are closed between May 3 and 9.
The indoor sports facilities Ikuri Sports Hall, Pyynikki Ball Games Centre, Tampere Stadium, Tesoma sports hall and Tampere Exhibition and Sports Centre are closed during the strike.
There may be changes in the opening hours of youth centers.
During the strike, all branches of the Tampere City Library, except for the self-help libraries, are closed and the library bus will not run.
More info here.
For more Information about the effects of the strike in the cities of Jyväskylä, Kuopio, Oulu and Rovaniemi, you can click on their respective links that will direct you to the cities’ web pages.
