Topical issues

Why are pensions such a central part of a welfare state? Why is the Finnish pension system the most reliable one in the Nordics? The new book Understanding Finnish Pensions tells the success story of Finnish pensions. This easy-to-understand and concise book is particularly suitable for experts, decision makers and students who are interested in the Nordic welfare state.

Many persons who draw the partial old-age pension continue working as before, with-out changes to their wage level. Only every fifth person on this pension benefit seems to have cut down on working. This is evident in a recent study by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

Employers who face difficulties recruiting workers are not necessarily more willing than other employers to hire persons over the age of 55. These employers invest in older workers only if they have a more positive perception of older workers than employers have on average. This is evident in a fresh research article by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

Maarit Selin (M.Sc.) has been appointed Director of Information Management and member of the Management Group as of 1 March 2024. She will be responsible for the register services and information management at the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

At year-end 2022, every fifth under-68-year-old pensioner worked. That means 70,000 persons, of whom 40,000 were drawing an old-age pension. At year-end 2022, there were a total of 380,000 earnings-related pension recipients under the age of 68 years in Finland. The data stems from recent statistics of the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

In 2022, the median insured monthly earnings of employees were 3,000 euros. For the self-employed and farmers, the median monthly insured incomes were 1,350 euros. The largest earnings were received by those in the age group 45–49 years, recent statistics of the Finnish Centre for Pensions reveal.

Despite the shortage of skilled workers in Finland, the country’s Government makes it difficult for (labour) immigrants to enter the country, get permanent residence and citizenship, argues Senior Researcher Pasi Saukkonen (Urban Research and Statistics Unit of the City of Helsinki). More important than the number of immigrants is their successful integration, but the Finnish Government’s cuts in social security and required resources for integration affects integration unfavourably, Saukkonen argues.

The newly-published Suomi.fi guide Recruiting an Employee provides advice on recruiting a new employee, from mapping options and selecting the new employee to organising proper initiation. The Finnish Centre for Pensions has taken part in designing and creating the guide.

Rehabilitees participating in work trials under the earnings-related pension scheme have fairly positive experiences of rehabilitation planning and cooperation with, for example, occupational health care or the employer. Issues to develop include individual support, timing of rehabilitation and discussions on the possibilities of employment after the work trial. This is evident in a survey by the Finnish Centre for Pensions that is based on interviews of rehabilitees participating in work trials.

Half of the newly retired old-age pensioners are interested in working in retirement. According to a survey conducted by the Finnish Centre for Pensions, most persons who have worked in retirement have continued working for the same employer and with similar tasks. The work is often irregular and occasional.