Summary: Shipwrecks from the 1980s could be ticking environmental time bombs.

The Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) has sent a research ship to investigate two shipwrecks seen as potential environmental risks.
 This week the research vessel Aranda has been checking on the condition and position of the wrecks, which have lain on the floor of the Archipelago Sea in southwest Finland for more than 30 years. The aim is to pump out the oil that still remains in the vessels to prevent it from leaking out into the sensitive Baltic environment.
 The ships sank in the 1980s in the Skiftet, a strait in the territorial waters of the autonomous Åland Islands. They lie at a depth of 30-40 metres, and have been identified as problem wrecks by Åland authorities due to the risk of oil leaks.
 Researchers on the Aranda studied the wrecks' posture on the seabed and took water and sediment samples from their surroundings. Divers also took photos of the ships, which will be used to generate 3D models.
 SYKE will pore over the collected material to determine if it is feasible to remove the oil from the ships' fuel tanks.
 Ministry aims to clean up Finnish waters
 The effort is part of an Environment Ministry programme to step up water protection. Besides removing oil from wrecks, it is intended to lower the nutritional load in Finland's Baltic and inland waters related to agriculture and forestry, to rehabilitate degraded waterways and to reduce harmful substances in urban water supplies.
 Story continues after photo
 The Aranda has plying the Baltic since 1989. Rolf Granqvist / Yle
 The Baltic Sea is considered one of the world's most polluted. Connected to the North Sea only by a narrow strait between Denmark and Sweden, its water is brackish and relatively shallow, making it particularly vulnerable to pollution. Oil tankers make up about one fifth of the Baltic's busy shipping traffic.
 The Aranda, an ice-reinforced research vessel based in Helsinki, has been operated by SYKE for 30 years. At 66 metres, it has facilities for up to 27 working scientists. Last year a major refit and modification was completed in Rauma, during which its sound level and emissions were lowered among other upgrades.

Finland investigates Baltic Sea shipwrecks' oil leak risks


Summary: Diversity should be about economics rather than politics, says inclusion advocate and startup founder Anne Badan.

organisaatiorakenne (rakenne, yhteiskunnalliset ilmiöt)

Diversity in the workplace should be a no-brainer for businesses in Finland, particularly those operating in the tech sector.
 That's the view of non-profit founder  Anne Badan.  Her organisation The Shortcut is on a mission to promote diversity in tech, beginning with  the annual investor-startup matchmaking event , Slush.
 Badan argued that Finnish firms looking for growth need to look to international markets, and diverse teams can support this push. In the end the diversity issue should be about economics rather than politics, she told All Points North.
 "If you start talking purely from an economic point of view it's a no-brainer. You need the diversity, you need to involve the people who have been overlooked. You need to get them engaged in the discourse so that they can pull their share."
 The Swiss national noted that growth in the tech sector is currently hindered by a shortage of skilled workers. "Last year about 60,000 jobs were not created due to a shortage of talent in Finland," she remarked, adding that Finland will need 53,000 technology experts by 2021 and 10,000 new software developers in the next four years.
 Badan noted that the discussion on diversity should not centre on implementing quotas, but should focus on merit-based hiring practices.
 "I know things change if you have quotas but at the end of the day you shouldn't choose people because of the colour of their skin or the language they speak. It's about merit, it's about what you've done that puts you in the right place," Badan declared.
 In tech, "talent can come from anywhere"
 The NGO founder said that employers in Finland need to look beyond familiar networks when it comes to hiring. She said what's needed is transparent systems and procedures and a culture of broadening horizons rather than thinking about specific attributes for a position.
 "It's not about deciding what criteria should be there but about opening up the criteria that can bring you more diverse applications for the job."
 According to Badan, the organisation is targeting tech as ground zero for promoting workplace diversity because their organisational structures are new. This makes it easier for them to embrace inclusion from the very beginning and make it part of their everyday work culture.
 "With the startup community it's easier because of technology which has this internationality. It has no colour, no boundaries, you can do it anywhere. Nowadays with digitalisation you can even work from anywhere. The talent can come from anywhere. So it is where the technology has an empowering element that can be very valuable for people who are not rooted in the local society."
 So far  The Shortcut has engaged more than 2,500 people  in its activities and 69 percent have found jobs, Badan said. She added that people do not necessarily need to be interested in a career in tech to participate, as the NGO offers a platform to meet people and to tap into networks that could lead to opportunities.
 Join the conversation
 If you have any questions or comments or would like to participate in the discussion, just contact us via WhatsApp on +358 44 421 0909, on our Facebook or Twitter accounts, or at yle.news@yle.fi.
 The All Points North podcast is a weekly look at what's going on in Finland. Subscribe via iTunes (and leave a review!), listen on Spotify and Yle Areena or find it on your favourite podcatching app or via our RSS feed.
 This week's show was presented by  Denise Wall  and our producer was  Priya Ramachandran D'souza . Our sound designer was  Laura Koso .

"It's a no-brainer": Can startups crack Finland's workplace diversity problem?


Summary: The former deputy head of the Police Special Intervention Unit was found guilty of cheating his own department.

Helsinki District Court has sentenced  Timo Olavi Lillqvist , former deputy director of the Helsinki Police Special Intervention Unit, to two and a half years in prison on a variety of counts.
 The charges included aggravated fraud and aggravated misuse of an official position. He bilked his own department out of money in collaboration with the director of a firm selling security products.
 Now-retired police sergeant Lillqvist, 60, was among the top brass at the Police Special Intervention Unit, a SWAT team known as the 'Bear Squad' ( Karhuryhmä ).
 Also sent to prison was  Olli Tapio Salo , 60, CEO and owner of a Helsinki security equipment company called Finnrappel. Likewise convicted on fraud charges, Salo received a prison sentence two months shorter than Lillqvist's.
 The company, established in 1994, sold products to police departments, the Border Guard, Customs and private individuals.
 Lillqvist provided Salo with insider information about competing companies' bids to supply the Bear Squad with equipment, giving Finnrappel a competitive advantage.
 When the sales were processed, the two together concocted invoices through which Helsinki Police overpaid the firm by more than 150,000 euros. The bills included items that were not delivered and others at marked-up prices, to the financial benefit of the police sergeant.
 Sniper targets and body bags
 According to its website, which was last updated in mid-2018, Finnrappel sold a wide variety of military and police-style gear ranging from rifle scopes and human sniper targets to body bags, eavesdropping detection devices and portable toilets. The site includes a link to an group honouring the White side of the 1918 Finnish Civil War, as well as US gun-rights memes.
 The court found that Lillqvist had a central, independent role in the Bear Squad's equipment procurement, including the bidding process. At the same time, he served as the liaison between his unit and Finnrappel.
 Evidence included emails between him and Salo, in which the officer dictated product volumes, prices and invoicing. The court ruled that the messages included euphemistic discussions about transferring the ill-gotten gains to bank accounts controlled by Lillqvist, and to him directly in cash.
 Both deny breaking any laws. They have the right to appeal the rulings.

Ex-leader of police 'Bear Squad' sentenced to prison for aggravated fraud


Summary: The cabinet wants extra funding to help speed up processing of immigration documents.

Ministerit, ministeriöt ja valtioneuvosto

The centre-left government on Thursday presented a wish list of additional appropriations as part of the supplementary budget for 2020. They include three million euros for police facilities, 2.4 million euros for the Emergency Services Academy and two million for the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri).
 Other planned spending boosts include 20 million euros for "development of continuous learning and know-how," which means more opportunities for adult education and keeping abreast with changes in working life.
 The proposal was handed to Parliament on Thursday.
 According to Interior Minister  Maria Ohisalo , the two million euros in additional appropriation for Migri would be targeted to improving its electronic processing system to avoid delays, ensure judicial protection and guarantee that information systems remain up-to-date.
 The extra money earmarked for the police is for upgrading facilities. There have been reports of air quality problems at many police stations and other official buildings.
 "It is important that the police are able to work in healthy facilities that meet their needs," Ohisalo said on Thursday.
 There are also proposals for supplementary funding for home services for military veterans as well as the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), various environmental and peace NGOs and for Lahti's year as  European Green Capital  in 2021.

Government seeks more money for Migri, police and NGOs


Summary: The postal strike threatens public transport, police probe a home care death and venture funding flows to Finland.

Julkisten ja hyvinvointialojen liitto (JHL)

Finland's media on Friday mainly explores the possible implications of the ongoing postal workers' strike.
 Postal strike threatens public transit
 Postal dispute  sympathy strikes could  paralyse public transport  in the greater capital area on Monday if negotiators don’t find a solution to the postal workers’ strike over the weekend, writes national daily  Helsingin Sanomat .
 Bus transport could be affected as the Transport Workers’ Union as well as the Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors (JHL) have threatened to expand sympathy strikes on Monday.
 Helsinki Airport could also face disruption if the Finnish Aviation Union (IAU) ramps up support action.
 Earlier this week the Aviation Union said its members involved in strike support are working in ground handling, technology, catering, freight, as well as airport security inspection for all airlines operating to and from Finland.
 National mail carrier Posti says the industrial action, which could continue until 8 December, has already delayed mail deliveries by several weeks.
 Deadly glitch
 Swedish-language  Hufvudstadsbladet  picks up on a story making headlines this week regarding police launching a preliminary investigation into the case of an elderly woman who  died unnoticed at home  in 2018 after being released from hospital.
 The woman lived alone and was supposed to be looked after by Helsinki’s home care services, but she was never visited by a nurse because the city’s home care unit said it didn’t know she had been discharged.
 “Although hospitals and home care units access the same patient database, the system doesn’t notify home nursing when a patient is discharged,”  Seija Meripaasi , who heads Helsinki’s rehabilitation services said. “This led to us believing the woman was still in hospital.”
 Super, the workers' union in the personal care sector, previously commented on the case, saying that home carers' workloads are too heavy, with workers visiting between 10-15 clients on a morning shift.
 Next year, a new patient data system,  Apotti , is scheduled to be rolled out in the Uusimaa region. The system is expected to give social and healthcare workers broader access to patient information.
 Venture capital flowing to Finnish startups
 With tech industry event  Slush  underway in Helsinki, business magazine  Talouselämä  takes a look at how Finnish startups receiving private equity investments have fared.
 In 2016, seven Finnish startups reached a turnover of 10 million euros. A year later the number of companies in this category grew to 18, growing to 31 in 2018.
 However figures show that only 42 out of 334 Finnish startups managed to turn a profit last year, according to Talouselämä.
 Experts say money spent in venture capital is surging at the moment, having a potentially distorting effect on the market.

Friday's papers: Public transport disruptions, a deadly glitch and Finnish startups attract funding


Summary: The operation began with an activist group threatening cyberattacks unless it was paid a ransom in bitcoin.

More than 200 Finnish municipalities and public organisations are rehearsing how to respond to possible cyberattacks. The Population Register Centre is coordinating a simulated attack dubbed Taisto19 ('fight 19'). In the scenario, a hacker group is demanding that the organisations pay ransoms and carries out a series of cyberattacks.
 On 10 October, 235 public organisations received a demand in which an activist group calling itself #Tietovuoto321 ('data breach 321') threatened to carry out cyberattacks if it was not paid a ransom fee in bitcoin by a certain date.
 The Population Register Centre says that organisers have tried to make the situation as realistic as possible, and that it could easily be true.
 Since the first ultimatum, the situation has been gradually developing in the lead-up to the main practice days, when the agencies and towns will see their websites and data systems come under simulated attack. There have already been two practice days in the past month, with a third scheduled for next week.
 Organisations "waking up" to new threats
 While it may not be possible to effectively deflect such threats in real life, the aim of the exercise is to bolster organisations' abilities to cope with an attack.
 This is the second Taisto exercise arranged by the Population Register Centre, which is tasked with promoting the digitalisation of society and electronic services in Finland. It operates under the Ministry of Finance. The agency's general secretary,  Kimmo Rousku , says that organisations have responded enthusiastically to the exercises.
 He says that organisations have in recent years begun to wake up to new types of threats and the fact that they may come under attack.
 This year Finnish towns such as Lahti, Pori and Kokemäki, as well as an array of public websites, have faced cyberattacks.

Finnish municipalities, agencies brace for simulated cyberattack


Summary: A negative outlook on life can be detrimental to heart health, fresh Finnish research finds.

A Tampere University  study  says pessimism can significantly contribute to a person developing coronary heart disease.
 The study monitored 3,000 men and women between the ages of 52 and 76 for 10 years. At the start of the study, participants were surveyed to determine how well their outlooks aligned with optimistic and pessimistic personality traits.
 The study showed that pessimistic men were four times as likely to develop heart disease compared to participants deemed the least pessimistic. The most pessimistic people in the study were also more than twice as likely to die of coronary artery disease.
 "It seems that pessimism alone is a risk factor for developing coronary artery disease, even when accounting for lifestyle, cholesterol and blood sugar," said  Mikko Pänkäläinen , who was due to defend a dissertation on the subject at Tampere University on Friday.
 Pänkäläinen said pessimists expect more bad than good things to happen. Assuming the worst in every situation also raises the body’s inflammation levels, the study found.
 However being an outright optimist didn’t necessarily improve health outcomes.
 "People carry both optimistic and pessimistic traits. Optimism alone wasn’t beneficial. This study found that not being too pessimistic was the main health benefit," he explained.
 Childhood roots
 The study also found that pessimists have unhealthier lifestyles than people who are more positive in their outlook.
 Pessimists were also less willing to improve their habits, according to Pänkäläinen.
 Pessimism develops during childhood and adolescence, becoming a part of a person’s nature. The study suggests that pessimists in their 50s and 60s grew towards pessimism in their youth.
 "Financial problems and difficult family circumstances experienced in childhood can cause pessimism," he said.
 But won’t studies like this send those with pessimistic tendencies spiralling further down into doom and gloom?
 "Pessimists can learn to think more positively, even if not changing their overall worldview," he explained.
 The scientific community has previously linked depression to a greater likelihood of developing heart disease.

Study: Pessimism a risk factor for heart disease


Summary: New data show that in 2018, one-third of men aged 45-49 with a basic education had no children.

New data released by Statistics Finland on Friday suggest rising childlessness in Finland, with the phenomenon especially evident among men and women with a basic level of education.
 Fresh figures indicated that in 2018, childlessness was highest among women aged 45—49 who speak national languages and who had only completed basic education, at 22.5 percent. The corresponding percentage of childless women with an upper secondary school education in the same age group was 18.7 percent and 18.3 percent for their peers with tertiary level qualifications.
 Compared to 10 years earlier, the percentage of childless women aged 45—49 with secondary education was 3.6 percentage points higher. The difference among women with basic education was three percentage points.
 The data revealed that the disparity among men was even greater. One in three men between the ages of 45 and 49 who had completed only basic education was childless. Among men of a similar age with an upper secondary school education the percentage was 29.4 percent, and 20.4 percent among men of the same age with a tertiary level education.
 Decline in highly educated women living alone
 Education levels were also reflected in relationships, according to Statistics Finland. The data crunchers reported that last year, more 45—49-year-olds with a basic education were living alone than in 1987, the baseline year for the statistical report. On the other hand, 43 percent of people in the same age cohort who had completed upper secondary school were in relationships, compared to 37 percent in 1987.
 However more with a university degree had no children or partner than women in similar circumstances. The statistics indicated that the percentage of highly educated women living alone had declined significantly from about 70 percent in 1987 to around 50 percent in 2018.
 The data also revealed that at the end of last year, the highest proportion of childless women – 22 percent – could be found in southern Finland’s Uusimaa region. By comparison, 14 percent of women aged 45—49 in Ostrobothnia in western Finland were childless.
 The numbers also suggested that childlessness was more prevalent in urban centres, with up to 40 percent of childless women between the ages of 45 and 49 living in city centres in 2018.

Childlessness trend continues in Finland


Summary: Authorities will re-evaluate some cases in light of harsh criticism from the Court of Human Rights.

The Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) says it will revisit about 500 asylum decisions following a European court ruling critical of a previous deportation.
 Last week the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) found  Finnish authorities guilty  of violating the European Convention on Human Rights. The case centred on an Iraqi man who was killed in Baghdad in late 2017, soon  after Finland rejected his asylum application  and deported him.
 Migri says it wants to ensure that any cases similar to those in the case are identified.
 Some cases where applicants have received enforceable negative asylum decisions will face new scrutiny, if the cases were processed before the 14 November ECHR ruling.
 Migri says it will look through these decisions to make sure that they have been handled in accordance with the ECHR ruling. If any flags are raised, asylum seekers may be asked to re-apply.
 Finnish authorities "failed to comply with their obligations"
 The  ECHR statement  drew attention to risk evaluation, including how events in an applicant's past are taken into consideration in weighing possible future threats. It also told Finnish authorities that in this case they should have considered the general cumulative effect of individual factors in the applicant's background.
 In its decision, the court declared that Finnish "authorities and courts were aware, or ought to have been aware, of facts which indicated that the [man] could be exposed to a danger to life or a risk of ill‑treatment upon his returning to Iraq". As a result, it concluded that they "failed to comply with their obligations under Articles 2 and/or 3 of the Convention when dealing with the...asylum application".
 Two days before the ECHR decision, Migri published a report stating that "the reintegration of Iraqi returnees to their home region has succeeded to a fair extent".
 In recent years, Iraqis have formed the largest group of people seeking asylum in Finland. In 2017, more than 1,450 did so, nearly twice as many applicants as from Syria. A slightly higher number of Iraqis applied last year, with Russians this time a distant second.

Finland to reconsider 500 asylum decisions after European court ruling


Summary: It has also been possible to pick up prescriptions in Croatia since the end of June.

In January, social affairs and health ministries in Finland and Estonia announced that it would be possible for Finnish residents to purchase prescription medication in Estonia and vice versa.
 The system took effect almost immediately for Finnish residents. The result is that medicine has joined other products such as alcoholic beverages on lists for shopping trips to the Estonian capital.
 In July, drugs were dispensed via e-prescriptions at Estonian pharmacies roughly 830 times. In August, another 700 e-prescriptions were filled in Estonia, followed by 630 in September and another 700 in October, making for a total of 5,700 prescriptions picked up.
 This is still a small number compared to as many as six million prescriptions dispensed in Finland every month.
 Permission to share health info required
 Finnish residents who opt to purchase prescription drugs in Estonia only need to ensure that they have granted permission to share their health records and prescription data in the online health database,  Omakanta . In addition, they must present a valid form of identification.
 "The biggest obstacle to dispensing prescriptions abroad has been that the customer had forgotten to agree to share data with pharmacies abroad. Another reason is in cases where the total quantity of a prescription has been defined in writing, for example as a two-year prescription," said customer relationship head  Sini Palo  of benefits agency Kela’s Kanta service.
 Since the end of June, it has also been possible to purchase prescription medication at Croatian pharmacies. However the number of prescriptions handed out there has so far been minimal.
 Customers would do well to be aware that when they buy prescription drugs abroad, the products may have different names.
 "A doctor may prescribe medication using the commercial name or the active ingredient. It’s rare that you will get a drug with the same name; rather it will be switched for something similar," Palo explained.
 Not for drugs affecting central nervous system
 It’s not possible to get all types of prescription drugs abroad, however. For example, it is not possible to purchase drugs that affect the central nervous system, or so-called CNS-affecting drugs.
 As a result, people planning to take overseas trips are advised to purchase the required quantity of drugs with the relevant documentation in their country of origin. On the other hand, patients can also be provided with a written prescription for use abroad.
 Refunds for medical expenses such as prescriptions are not available from Kela immediately, but travellers can use their sales receipts to apply for them once they have returned to Finland.
 "With respect to e-prescriptions, a receipt and any possible printouts from the pharmacy are usually enough," Kela’s Palo advised.

Finns take advantage of new system to fill prescriptions in Estonia


Summary: Construction workers in southwest Finland freed a hapless fox caught in a metal tube.

Rakennusten tai niiden osien rakentaminen

When builders in Turku noticed a fox trapped in a metal pipe with only its head visible, they set to work releasing the forlorn-looking creature.
 Wednesday's rescue operation took about 15 minutes.
 Story continues after photo
 The animal was understandably bewildered by its predicament. Lasse Lappalainen
 "The fox was in the pipe, which was so slippery that the animal was no longer able to back its way out," explains  Tom Tapani Outinen  of the construction firm Turun Elementtiasennus.
 A video by his colleague  Sami Keinonen  shows workers lifting up the sealed end of the pipe, letting the fox slide out the other end.
 "My work buddies helped the fox to get out of the pipe, which had water in the bottom. The fox's fate would certainly have been sealed without  Lasse Lappalainen , who took pictures and freed the fox," Outinen tells Yle.
 Eyewitnesses said it appeared that the fox had been in the pipe for quite a while.
 It emerged, rather bedraggled and confused-looking, staring at the pipe as if trying to figure out what had just happened. One builder encouraged it to leave the construction site.
 Story continues after photo
 Workers believe the animal had been trapped for quite some time. Lasse Lappalainen
 Construction workers are building a replacement for the old Juslenia Hall on Yliopistonmäki (University Hill) near the centre of the former capital city.
 Upon completion in the spring of 2021, it will be shared by the University of Turku and its Swedish-language counterpart, Åbo Akademi.
 The original Juslenia Hall from the 1970s was demolished last year following long-running complaints about cramped facilities and poor air quality.

Watch: Fox rescued from slippery pipe in Turku


Summary: The press on Thursday suggests that retailers’ discounts might not be all they seem.

Although the  postal strikes and associated sympathy actions were called off on Wednesday , Finland could still see a wave of industrial action this autumn, as strikes and lockouts threaten in different industries across the economy.
 Ilta-Sanomat  suggests  that the current round of negotiations could see wave of strikes affecting some 100,000 workers, with the  forest products industry’s lockout  just the start.
 This is a symptom of particularly difficult negotiations across the labour market. Since the Confederation of Finnish Industries announced in 2017 that it would no longer co-ordinate talks across the economy on behalf of employers, unions in each sector have been left to fight their own battles.
 This time round employers and unions have a number of demands in most talks. Unions want to eliminate the ‘kiky’ competitiveness pact rules, which increased working hours by some 24 hours a year.
 Employers want to keep hold of that change, and according to the Pro trade union some are also proposing they stop deducting union fees directly from workers’ salaries and further restrictions on strike actions.
 SDP in trouble
 All this is problematic for Prime Minister  Antti Rinne  and his Social Democratic Party. Rinne used to lead the Pro trade union, and has come under pressure from unions to intervene and from employers to stay neutral in his role as PM.
 Helsingin Sanomat  publishes  an analysis piece that outlines the lead-up to the current strife, including the Juha Sipilä government’s controversial competitiveness pact and Rinne’s harsh criticism of it.
 The piece then suggests that employers’ organisations are not being terribly constructive in working groups set up by the government to explore ways to increase employment, and that many informed observers believe employers’ organisations are waiting for the Rinne government to fall — and might even be willing to try and speed up that process.
 Another headache for the SDP is the performance of their Minister for State Ownership Steering,  Sirpa Paatero .
 She has given a confused account of what she knew about Posti’s plan to slash pay for 700 workers, and when she knew it.
 The state of ownership
 HS has seen the documents that referred to the plan and agrees that yes, they are unclear. But a comment piece  asks  if the minister doesn’t understand them, what is the future for the system of government oversight of the state’s many and varied holdings in Finnish companies?
 The question remains, though, of how a government led by a labour market expert (Rinne), which has said it prevented all 10,000 postal workers’ pay being reduced, could fail to understand what it was reading.
 Two further stories added to the difficult reading for social democrats:  tabloid stories  about the SDP links of theatre impressario  Veijo Baltzar’s  assistant, who is also his co-accused in  a human trafficking case .
 And finally, a poll from Helsingin Sanomat that suggests the party’s support stands at 15.2 percent — some seven percentage points behind the right-wing populist Finns Party who leads the polls.
 Black Friday business
 Iltalehti has a warning about ‘Black Friday’, the US phenomenon around Thanksgiving in which people spend one of their few public holidays shopping for discounted goods.
 It has arrived in Europe, and Iltalehti  reports  that all is not as it might seem.
 The paper spoke to a price comparison website which suggested that companies might (shock, horror) increase their prices in the run-up to Black Friday in order to ensure they have a large discount percentage on the day itself.
 Retailers might also compare the discounted price to the recommended retail price, which in practice almost nobody ever pays.
 Another trick is to allow only a small percentage of stock to go at the discounted rate, which gives a big marketing hit for a small cost.
 So whatever the deal is, be sure to do your research and read the small print before you buy.

Thursday’s papers: Strike wave, SDP woes continue and Black Friday warning


Summary: The legislative reform is due to take effect from 1 June 2020.

Sunny skies, dry weather, minus five degrees Celsius on the thermometer—and summer tyres on the road. Starting 1 June next year new legislation will allow drivers of private vehicles to use summer tyres during winter, weather permitting.
 Current rules require motorists to switch to winter tyres at the latest from the beginning of December and to use them until the end of February. However starting next June, the use of winter tyres will only be mandatory when conditions require it.
 On the other hand, if wintry road conditions occur outside of the traditional season, drivers will have to swap their cars’ summer tyres for winter versions – and this will apply from November until the end of March.
 No clear guidance on weather
 The legal reform due to take effect next year does not however, specifically describe what kind of weather requires the use of winter tyres. In Germany for example, the law states that winter tyres should be used when roads have ice, slush or black ice.
 In Finland however, legislators have acted on the assumption that motorists are rational enough to know when winter tyres are required. It is an interesting position, given that nowadays many drivers have very little experience of driving in the worst conditions that winter can serve up.
 That is mainly because a majority of road users tend to drive on well-maintained motorways, where they may only encounter the most slippery winter conditions for a few hours every season. However shorter winters could bring a greater risk of aquaplaning on even the best-kept roads, conditions that could last for weeks.
 Similarly, in the spirit of the legal reform introduced by ministry of transport and communications, motorists will not be fined for running afoul of the new law. So far the National Police Board has not even considered what kind of weather can be considered suitable for summer tyres to be used.
 The general idea in police circles is that initially at least, police will issue warnings to drivers using summer threads in challenging road conditions.
 Finland to finally define suitable winter tyres
 The new law will also call on drivers to pay closer attention to the kinds of tyres they use. During winter they will likely be transitioned away from studded tyres to friction tyres. In some quarters, friction tyres are seen as damaging to roads and consequently to state and municipal budgets. Doubts have also arisen over their environmental impact.
 Perhaps surprisingly, Finland has never stipulated what characteristics winter tyres should have. That work is currently under way at the transport and communications ministry and it is due for completion around the same time the new rules come into play.
 Story continues after photo.
 Derrick Frilund / Yle
 It seems likely that in Finland, motorists will in future be called upon to use tyres with a three-peak mountain snowflake (3PMSF) symbol, which indicates that they meet the performance criteria in snow testing for use in severe snow conditions.
 Finnish legislation will still have to be harmonised with European regulations. In addition, foreign motorists cannot be excluded from driving on Finnish roads due to unreasonable winter tyre requirements.

New road rules to allow summer tyres during winter – weather permitting


Summary: Close to 60 percent of polled Finnish residents were opposed to the idea.

Only about a quarter of the Finnish population is in support of lowering the voting age in Finland to 16 years of age, according to a recent survey. The Municipal Development Foundation-commissioned poll found that 27 percent of respondents approved of the voting age change, while 59 percent were against the idea.
 Even young people themselves seemed to be in opposition, as 56 percent of the 18 to 30-year-olds that responded to the survey were not in favour of the measure. Among students, support for dropping the eligible voting age by two years was gauged at 40 percent.
 For survey respondents over 60, the percentage of people in opposition to a lower voting age rose to four-fifths.
 The survey found that political party affiliation had little influence on the participants' views on the subject, as the clear majority of respondents were opposed to lowering the voting age across the political spectrum.
 The survey was carried out in September by pollster Kantar TNS, with 1,127 people participating. The margin of error with regard to the results is at most three percentage points in either direction.

Majority against lowering voting age to 16, survey suggests


Summary: Anna-Maja Henriksson says court sentences for sexual offenses involving minors should in particular become more severe.

Minister for Justice  Anna-Maja Henriksson  has indicated that Finland's government is currently considering tougher punishments for perpetrators of sex crimes.
 "My view is that there could certainly be some kind of stricter penalty scale in use, especially for sexual offenses against children," she said in a Saturday morning appearance on Yle's Ykkösaamu talk show.
 Henriksson explained that the five-party government coalition is reviewing current legislation on the sex crimes, with a mind to make changes.
 She says the role of the internet in such crimes will also be examined more closely as part of the legal reform process.
 "The fact that some adults commit such crimes against minors via the internet does not make the crime any less pressing. It is disgusting and very, very serious," the minister said.
 Henriksson was not able to specify what kind of legal changes would be required to address online offenses, but promised that the working group appointed to assess changes to Finland's criminal code will "consider everything" before it reaches any conclusions.
 Finland may follow in Sweden's "explicit consent" footsteps
 During the interview, Henriksson also said that Finland's laws on rape must be changed. She said that the coalition discussed plans to pass new legislation in this area already at the start of their four-year governmental term.
 "We have decided within the government to implement a change to the law. If there is a lack of consent, then it should be considered rape. […] No should mean no," she said.
 The justice minister added that Finland's working group would examine the Swedish model carefully in its appraisal of the situation.
 Sweden passed a new law in 2018 that criminalizes sex without consent as rape, even when there are no threats, coercion or violence involved. England, Scotland, Ireland, Belgium, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Iceland and Germany have similar laws.
 The minimum penalty for aggravated rape and rape of a child was also increased in Sweden from four to five years' imprisonment.

Justice Minister signifies support for tougher sex crime penalties


Summary: The altered video shows a different response from the interior minister to a Finns Party question about immigration.

First deputy parliamentary speaker  Tuula Haatainen  has condemned a doctored video of a parliamentary exchange between nationalist Finns Party chair  Jussi Halla-aho  and Interior Minister  Maria Ohisalo .
 In the video, Halla-aho talks about "bullets flying and bombs exploding" in Sweden as a result of an open migration policy. He then asks the minister whether the security of foreigners takes precedence over that of Finns.
 The fake video suggests that Ohisalo responds by saying that the government wants to do just that -- place the security of foreigners ahead of that of Finns.
 Finns Party chair Jussi Halla-aho. Mikko Stig / Lehtikuva
 However in reality, the minister said that in a constitutional state, people should not be placed in opposition to each other. Ohisalo’s comment in the video was in response to a different issue.
 Deputy speaker: Video manipulation "reprehensible"
 The  minutes of the parliamentary session  (in Finnish) also reflect an accurate account of the exchange.
 On Saturday afternoon Haatainen took to Twitter to condemn the video, saying that she will table it for discussion among her parliamentary speaker colleagues.
 "The manipulation of content from a plenary session of parliament is extremely reprehensible, base and worrying to our democracy. I will raise the matter with [other] speakers. This phenomenon must be stopped," Haatainen wrote.
 Minister Ohisalo quoted the deputy speaker’s tweet and thanked her for addressing the issue.
 "The manipulation of photos and videos, fake quotes and the like, which undermine trust in politicians and at worst lead to threats of violence, are extremely worrying and sad from the perspective of democracy," she tweeted.

Deputy Speaker condemns fake video of MPs' immigration exchange


Summary: Rescue officials were unable to save three siblings who were asleep upstairs in the two-storey structure.

Defective electrical work as well as an insufficient number of fire alarms and poor placement of the devices were to blame for a log cabin fire that  claimed the lives of three underage siblings  in Levi in April this year.
 On Friday, the Safety Investigation Authority (OTKES) released the findings of an investigation into the fire, along with recommendations to ensure the incident is not repeated.
 Police said in a statement that they are still looking into the case and it is not yet clear whether or not they will launch a preliminary investigation. They also did not disclose any possible offences under consideration.
 Investigators said that it had already been established that the blaze was caused by incorrectly installed floor heating elements. "The installation method was unusual," lead investigator  Kai Vaolnen  said in the statement.
 For example, there was too much heating cable installed in the gaps under the floor, the cable was embedded in the insulation, and in some places it was attached to the cabin with steel hooks – contrary to official regulations.
 "Risks involved in electrical installation"
 OTKES director  Veli-Pekka Nurmi  stressed during a press conference on Friday that electrical work should always be performed by a qualified contractor.
 "It seems that we are rather cavalier about electrical work. I find it a bit odd that we do not take the risks involved electrical installation seriously," Nurmi added.
 OTKES said that the problem does not lie with existing regulations, but said that Finland needs a system to ensure that electrical work and commissioning checks are done by a qualified electrician.
 Meanwhile Valonen revealed that there had been difficulties in the construction of the cabin. For example the construction manager had been let go and the project had taken seven years to complete, from 1998 to 2005.
 Use a safety checklist
 Safety investigators gave a total of four recommendations to help prevent similar fires in future. Among other things, OTKES called for a check list for rental cabin security systems that would help both landlords and tenants ensure that safety issues are in order.
 "Emergency exits and fire prevention are especially challenging in rental cottages. In these cases, the owner is only present for short periods and guests are not necessarily familiar with the place," Nurmi pointed out.
 He said that safety issues and international cooperation should also be considered in the platform economy as part of rules for services such as Airbnb rentals.
 No chance to save children
 Officials said that the three underage children who perished were asleep on the upper floor of the cabin when the fire started. The oldest sibling, a teenager, was sleeping downstairs and heard the fire alarm.
 He managed to escape the blaze. However the children sleeping upstairs perished of smoke inhalation. Although the first firefighting units arrived on the scene in 13 minutes, it was not possible to save the younger siblings.
 "There were fire alarms downstairs and it was also possible to hear them during the emergency call. It is still not clear if there were alarms upstairs. According to the owner there were, but none were visible in the photos that we received of the cottage roof," Valonen said.
 He noted that research has shown that children are not as likely as adults to wake up to the sound of a fire alarm.

Faulty electrical work to blame for Levi cabin fire that killed three minors


Summary: The national airline said that it had already cancelled 24 flights due to the planned strike action.

National flag carrier Finnair said on Sunday that it had already cancelled two dozen flights ahead of a planned sympathy strike by the Aviation Workers Union, IAU, due to begin on Monday if no agreement on wages is reached between postal workers and employer Posti, according to daily Helsingin Sanomat.
 The airline also  announced the flight cancellations on its website  and urged passengers to check that their contact information is up to date so they can be reached with potential re-routing information.
 The IAU announced the industrial action to support  postal workers locked in a dispute with Posti  over a new collective bargaining agreement.
 Postal workers have been on strike since 11 November after failing to reach agreement with Posti over terms and conditions of work. The strike is expected to continue until mid-December unless both sides manage to see eye to eye.
 Both sides have been meeting frequently to try to work through their differences, with talks continuing through Sunday.
 300 more flights could be grounded
 Meanwhile the IAU said on its website that a breakthrough in the talks between the employer Posti and the Post and Logistics Union, PAU, might still occur on Sunday. It said that if an agreement is reached, it would call off the planned strike immediately.
 However Finnair said that even if a settlement is reached on Sunday, flights would still be cancelled. Finnair communications chief  Päivyt Tallqvist  told HS that if no agreement is reached and aviation workers go through with the proposed strike, the airline would have to cancel 300 additional flights, affecting up to 20,000 passengers.
 On Sunday negotiators were said to be holding talks on two different tracks. Employee and employer representatives met at 10.00am to discuss a new collective bargaining agreement.
 At the same time, the issue of 700 parcel sorting workers who were transferred to  a new agreement with lower wages  was due to be resolved by 3.00pm. That deadline was later pushed back to 5.30pm.
 Support strikes to hamper passenger ferries
 Possible support strikes by unions in other transportation sectors could also affect shipping and passenger ferries. If no agreement is reached and strike action goes ahead, vessels flying Finnish flags and operated by Viking Line, Tallink Silja and Eckerö Line will likely remain in harbour.
 Viking Line spokesperson  Johanna Boijer-Svahnström  said she hoped for a breakthrough in the negotiations so that the knock-on strikes could be avoided. "Otherwise we are talking about thousands of passengers. That would be a very serious situation," she added.
 She noted that the later the talks continue, the more likely that the vessels would not set sail. Passengers are advised to check cruise lines’ websites and social media channels for updates on the impact of the potential strikes.
 Buses to remain in depots
 Meanwhile Helsinki Regional Transport, HSL, said that some buses will not leave its depots regardless of whether or not postal workers and Posti reach a settlement on Sunday. A support strike by the Transport Workers’ Union, AKT, is expected to have a major impact on public transportation in the capital.
 On a daily basis, 1,265 buses ply their routes in Helsinki. Striking workers would mean that the majority would not go out on the roads.
 If the strikes are called off the possible impact could be corrected relatively quickly as it takes far less to get buses into traffic than planes, for example.
 However the longer it takes for both sides to reach consensus, the greater the impact will be. Commuters can check for updates on the situation  on the HSL website  and via its social media channels.
 Edit: Updated at 4.37pm to add information about the potential impact of other support strikes on passenger shipping and Helsinki public transportation.

Finnair cancels flights over planned aviation workers' sympathy strike


Summary: People who visited the emergency clinic are being urged to check that their measles vaccinations are up to date.

A middle-aged Finnish man was diagnosed with measles on Friday at a hospital in Hyvinkää, roughly 50 kilometres north of Helsinki.
 According to the Helsinki and Uusimaa hospital district, HUS, the man had travelled abroad before contracting the disease. Officials were unsure about whether or not he had ever been vaccinated against it.
 The man is currently receiving treatment at the hospital and has been quarantined to prevent the spread of the airborne disease. However hospital officials suspect that he may have infected people who visited the accident and emergency department on 22 November.
 Members of the public who visited the hospital’s emergency clinic and pre-hospital emergency care centres Friday morning and afternoon are being urged to check whether their measles immunisation is up to date.
 HUS has estimated that several dozens of people may have been exposed to infection. The hospital managed to identify patients and staff exposed to the disease. HUS said that the risk of infection is minimal, although measles is generally a highly contagious disease.
 Early symptoms of measles infection include a high fever, inflamed eyes and difficulty breathing. Another measles diagnosis was confirmed last Thursday at the Kanta-Häme central hospital in south-central Finland.

Dozens exposed to measles at Hyvinkää hospital


Summary: Postal and logistical employees and employer Posti did not reach agreement on contentious wage talks.

Representatives of postal and logistical workers and employer Posti failed to reach consensus on new terms and conditions of work, following a protracted negotiating session on Sunday.
 Shortly after 6.00pm on Sunday, national labour conciliator  Vuokko Piekkala  announced that the proposal tabled for negotiating parties to consider by 3.00pm -- and later by 5.30pm -- had been rejected by Medialiitto, the umbrella organisation representing the Posti subsidiary that employs outsourced parcel sorting workers.
 The main bone of contention in the talks turned on the fate of 700 parcel sorting employees who had been transferred to  a different collective bargaining agreement with poorer wages . According to Piekkala both trade unions representing workers had agreed to the proposal, along with Posti, but Medialiitto rejected it.
 Posti had outsourced the workers to Posti Palvelut Oy, whose collective agreement is agreed by Medialiitto on behalf of employers and the Industrial Union which represents workers, and covers newspaper delivery workers among others.
 The terms and conditions are regarded as worse by PAU, the postal workers union.
 Another proposal aimed at breaking the deadlock over a new collective agreement for 10,000 other postal and logistics workers also failed to go through.
 Support strikes to disrupt transportation
 The failure to agree a deal means that support strikes due to begin on Monday will go ahead. A planned strike by the Aviation Workers’ Union IAU already caused national flag carrier Finnair to  cancel about 24 flights due to take off on Sunday and Monday .
 Finnair said that it will likely have to cancel an additional 300 flights affecting 20,000 passengers if no agreement is reached.
 Meanwhile the Transport Workers’ Union had also announced a support strike that will keep passenger ferries in harbour  and stall more than 1,000 buses  used by Helsinki Regional Transport HSL to provide public transportation services.
 The Postal and Logistical Workers’ Union PAU originally announced strike action starting from 11 November. It later extended the industrial action until mid-December in the event that no settlement is reached.

Support strikes to hit planes, ferries and public bus services as wage talks falter


Summary: The theme of this year’s official Independence Day reception is knowledge.

President  Sauli Niinistö  spoke on Friday to set out the thinking behind the theme of this year’s Independence Day reception.
 Last month  it emerged that the theme would be ‘knowledge and discussion ’. Niinistö said that there is now more information than ever, but that along with that glut there are also half-truths and straight lies in public discussion.
 "And if we start heading in that direction, this will become a difficult place to live for everybody," said Niinistö. "Maybe the most concerning thing is the hurtful style of discussion where people also attack individuals. It’s quite a tough spot for the victim."
 Niinistö said that everyone should defend discussion and debate in society, but also said that critical debates are important.
 On the menu at this year’s reception are organic treats, including the famous traditional punch. There are also vegan wines on offer alongside tee and a beer brewed using leftover bread.
 Secrets of the ball
 Much of the food comes from small producers in the countryside, but organisers of the number one social event of the year do not reveal their names.
 "This year we have for the first time a salmiakki pastry, for instance," said head chef  Jyrki Jääskeläinen . "The sandwich cake also has new fillings, including pike and smoked salmon."
 A capella group Club for Five will perform at the event, alongside singers  Laura Voutilainen  and  Lauri Mikkola  and the Cantores Minores Helsinki Cathedral choir.
 In all there will be some 1,700 guests at the reception to be hosted by Niinistö and the First Lady  Jenni Haukio , including 30 veterans of the Second World War. Some of those are women who served in the Lotta Svärd auxiliary organisation.

President Niinistö: If lies become common, Finland will become a difficult place to live


Summary: Union action affecting planes, passenger ferries, and buses in the capital, dominate the morning’s front pages.

The tabloid Ilta-Sanomat reports that only about 25 percent of buses in Helsinki were operating as of 6am on Monday morning.
 Several unions  called 24-hour strikes  in support of the Postal and Logistical Workers’ Union PAU over its stalled contract talks with employers.
 A strike by the Transport Workers’ Union that started at 3am Monday and continues until 3am Tuesday will keep passenger ferries in harbour and most buses used by Helsinki Regional Transport HSL to provide public transportation services will remain at their depots.
 Meanwhile, a strike by the Aviation Workers’ Union is expected to affect over 20,000 airline passengers. Because of labour action, Finnair has cancelled around 300 flights.
 Ilta-Sanomat further reports that some other airlines have announced cancellations of departures from Finnish airports. So far they include Lufthansa, Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines. Airport operator Finavia has warned that the effects of the strike will likely carry over well into Tuesday and is urging travelers to check for details with their airline.
 General strike looming?
 In an analysis of the labour market situation, Iltalehti political reporter  Lauri Nurmi  writes that years of pent up pressure is now exploding, and Finland is on the teetering on the verge of a general strike.
 On Sunday, the Industrial Union and Union of Salaried Employees issued a strike warning that if carried out would mean a walk out by tens of thousands of workers and a near shutdown of Finland's exports in December. And this, Nurmi points out, is happening even before the public sector begins new contract talks.
 Many people, he says, are wondering what is going on with Finnish society.
 The answer, according to this writer, is to be found in the impact of globalisation, the recent history of national politics, and to some extent in personal clashes between employers and union leaders.
 Above all, though, he argues that it is the result of pent-up tensions since 2015 when the centre and right pushed for a highly contentious labour market pact aimed at improving  the nation's competitive position  by keeping labour costs under control.
 Now with a  cabinet headed by a Social Democratic  prime minister, it would be best, in Nurmi's view, for the government to let labour market organisations battle things out.
 The unions would do the Social Democratic Party a disservice by making demands for the government to step in. This just what caused problems in 2015 and 2016 when the government interfered in what Nurmi describes as the labour market's "balance of terror".
 Battle against snus
 Snus is a kind of tobacco, typically held in the mouth between the lips and gums by users. The sale of snus is banned in the European Union, except in Sweden, but import for personal use is allowed.
 Helsingin Sanomat looks at efforts to cut, or eliminate the use of snus, especially among youth.
 Finland has been engaged in a "battle" against snus for a decade, the paper writes, but the results are not encouraging. The  use of snus has actually increased , even though sales are banned.
 The use of snus by young people has exploded during the past decade. Helsingin Sanomat points to a report issued by the National Institute for Health and Welfare a few weeks ago, stating that 35 percent of young Finnish males and 19 percent of females have used snus at some time. One in ten young Finns said they had used snus during the previous month.
 An annual school-age health survey this year found that close to 13 percent of upper secondary school boys use snus on a daily basis. In just two years, the number of girls in the same age group using snus ever day has tripled to over 3 percent.
 A task force on tobacco use at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health set forth two proposals last year aimed at cutting the use of snus.
 Officials believe that sports organisations are best positioned to deal with the problem. One proposal is to threaten sports organisations with cuts in financial support unless they commit to anti-tobacco efforts.
 The second prong of the attack is targeted at imports. Snus comes into the country mainly across the Swedish-Finnish land border in the north, or onboard passenger ferries, some as legal imports by travelers, some as  smuggled contraband .
 The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is now looking at severely cutting the legal import limits from one kilo per adult during any 24-hour period to just 100 grams of snus.
 No hunting with drones
 Throughout history, hunters have exploited the latest technology in tracking and bring down game, but authorities in Finland are reminding them that the there are limits to how the latest high-tech, drones and GPS, can be used.
 Kuopio's Savon Sanomat writes that the state forest management administrator Metsähallitus has received reports of instances of hunters using drones to drive game off frozen lakes towards waiting hunters. The use of any motorised device in hunting is forbidden by law.
 And, while the use of GPS tracking on hunting dogs is legal, this as well has caused some problems, according to Metsähallitus. Some hunters have used dogs to drive game, tracking by GSP and themselves driven by car to get a shot. By law hunters cannot be closer than 100 metres to a motor vehicle when discharging their weapons.
 Metsähallitus is reminding hunters that drones can be used to observe game animals, but not for the purpose of tracking them during a hunt.

Monday's papers: Transport strikes, battle against snus, a no to high-tech hunting


Summary: A sustainable future for reindeer herding will require improvements to northern grazing areas.

Over the past year, a working group at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has been examining the future of commercial reindeer herding in Finland, including the issue of how many domesticated reindeer there should be in the whole of the country.
 Under a proposal submitted by the group on Monday, the number of reindeer should remain at its present level for at least the next ten years. That figure is currently capped at 203,700.
 Reindeer are private property in Finland, but the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry is empowered to set limits on how many there should be. Owners work together in reindeer grazing associations that cover specific geographic areas.
 The current government's programme includes the aim of promoting reindeer herding as a profitable, sustainable, and culturally significant means of livelihood.
 Although the total permitted number of the beasts does not look set to change, the ministry's working group is proposing that each grazing association draw up its own grazing land management and use plan with the aim of improved sustainability.
 Under this latest proposal, reindeer grazing associations would be required to chose and implement no fewer than two of five suggestions on it has come up with on ways to improve their grazing lands.
 In addition, the working group has proposed that individual members of grazing associations should own no more than 500 reindeer. This change is aimed at expanding the number of people engaged in reindeer herding as their main livelihood.
 Actual changes to legislation will not be seen until the beginning of June 2020.

How many reindeer does Finland need? 203,700, say ministry experts


Summary: The prime ministers will discuss Finnish-Russian relations, trade agreements and the environment in their first ever meeting.

Finnish Prime Minister  Antti Rinne  will meet with his Russian counterpart  Dmitry Medvedev  in Moscow Monday.
 The agenda for the first meeting between the two prime ministers will include a discussion of bilateral relations, as well as a number of other issues including trade and the environment.
 Rinne’s delegation in the meeting will include Minister of Transport and Communications  Sanna Marin  and Minister of Agriculture and Forestry  Jari Leppä , and he therefore plans to further raise topics such as transport and forest cooperation between Finland and Russia.
 The prime ministers are also expected to discuss foreign policy issues such as military tensions in the Baltic Sea region and Russia's ongoing role in Ukraine.
 Climate change a key point
 Lauri Voionmaa , a special adviser to the prime minister, told Yle that the Finnish government's climate targets and concrete measures on how to achieve them will be presented at the summit in Moscow. The Finnish government wants to promote Russia's commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement, which was finally signed by Prime Minister Medvedev in September.
 Russia joined the agreement in 2015, but its final ratification was hampered by a number of delays.
 In addition, Rinne wants to discuss the protection of the Baltic Sea with Medvedev, as the Finnish government is planning to organise an international summit of prime ministers to help alleviate the environmental problems in the area.
 Finland-Russia relations "as good as they can be"
 Although this is their first face-to-face meeting, the prime ministers have spoken to each other in the past. Medvedev called Rinne in June to congratulate him on becoming Finnish prime minister, and invited him to visit Moscow.
 In a speech to Finnish ambassadors in August, Rinne said that Finland's relations with Russia are "as good as they can be in the current environment". He then referred to the tightening security situation in Europe caused by Russia's actions in Ukraine.
 The Finnish government has previously stated the normalisation of Finnish-Russian relations depends on Russia's efforts to resolve the conflict in Ukraine.

Rinne and Medvedev meet in Moscow


Summary: The embattled national mail carrier’s logistics business has been accused of unfair price practices by its competitors.

Between 2008 and 2015, Posti's logistics services -- the storing and transporting of various products for business customers -- posted a loss of over 170 million euros, according to a report by Yle’s investigative journalism programme MOT.
 With traditional mail volumes decreasing over the past number of years, Posti had been hoping to develop its logistics services into a profit-making operation to compensate for these losses.
 However, financial statements seen by MOT show the opposite has occurred. Over the same period that the logistics unit racked up losses, the traditional postal service generated almost 500 million euros in profits.
 In 2016, Posti ceased the practice of publicly releasing final financial figures for each separate division in the company. The firm later decided to merge the traditional postal service and logistics services and their related financial reporting into one unit .
 "Aggressive expansion"
 Posti’s competitors in the logistics marketplace have repeatedly appealed to the government to curb the state-owned Posti's logistics business.
 In a petition filed in 2017, a number of companies complained that the national carrier’s "aggressive expansion with 'unlimited' resources and loss-making buffers from traditional and profitable postal operations is a threat to private carriers".
 Earlier this year, five transport companies provided estimates to  Sirpa Paatero , minister responsible for ownership steering of state-owned enterprises, detailing how Posti had been providing transportation at rates up to 30 percent cheaper than its competitors.
 Posti denies price rigging and claims that it is operating at full market rates.
 MOT's investigation into Posti's logistics unit will be broadcast on Yle TV1 at 20.00 on Monday 25.11. The programme is in Finnish.

MOT: €170m-euro losses for Posti's failing logistics unit


Summary: Efforts to resolve differences with employer Posti over new collective bargaining agreements ran aground on Sunday.

The Postal and Logistics Workers’ Union, PAU, has announced that it will extend ongoing strike action until December. At the same time the union representing rail workers said it would embark on a series of rolling 24-hour solidarity strikes that would effectively stall rail traffic in early December.
 The PAU's ongoing industrial action will expand to include clerical and sales staff. So far only letter and parcel sorting as well as delivery employees have been involved. The ongoing postal strike is also expected to affect Christmas mail delivery.
 The union has been locked in a dispute with employer Posti over a new agreement covering terms and conditions of work for about 10,000 workers.
 Both sides are also at odds over the fate of about 700 parcel sorting workers, who were transferred to a new collective agreement in August that effectively slashes their pay by what the union says amounts to as much as 30 percent.
 Efforts spearheaded by national labour conciliator  Vuokko Piekkala  to resolve differences over the collective bargaining agreements  ran aground on Sunday .
 Rolling support strikes to affect rail traffic
 RAU, the union representing rail workers, said on Monday that it would roll out a fresh round of solidarity strikes to support striking Posti employees. If postal workers and employers fail to agree on a way forward, clerical workers employed by state-owned rail company VR and Traffic Management Finland (Finrail), another state-owned firm, will embark on a 24-hour sympathy strike starting Friday 29 November.
 The clerical personnel involved in the proposed sympathy strike perform duties such as customer service for passenger and freight traffic, ticket sales, freight traffic management, financial management as well as fault reporting and resolution. In the case of Finrail, the work stoppage will mainly affect traffic planners.
 In addition, the industrial action will halt urban rail traffic in southern Finland for 24 hours from 2 December. It will effectively stop all electrically-powered rolling stock from operating in the Helsinki Regional Transport region as well as across southern Finland.
 Moreover VR engine drivers working on commuter trains will be off the job from 3am on Monday 2 December until the same time the following morning, 3 December, when workers will once more report for duty.
 Intercity and freight rail traffic will then stop operating from 3am on 3 December until 4 December. The solidarity strike will not affect Allegro train services to Russia, the union said.
 Another 24-hour work stoppage is due to take place from 9 December, when traffic management operations will cease – except for duties related to the Allegro service. In practice, however, all other rail traffic will come to a complete halt on 9 December.
 The industrial action will not include personnel or tasks that affect life, health, the environment or public safety, RAU said.
 Solidarity strikes rolled out Monday
 Sunday’s scuppered talks triggered a series of solidarity strikes by unions representing different sectors, such as aviation workers and seamen. On Monday morning, tens of thousands of people were hit by transportation disruptions due to the 24-hour stoppages.
 The industrial action is intended to support postal workers locked in the wage dispute with employer Posti.
 National airline Finnair cancelled hundreds of flights, passenger ferries did not set sail and more than half of buses operated by Helsinki Regional Transport were not put into service.
 Meanwhile dockworkers have announced another 2-day support strike due to begin on Thursday. Seamen have already refused to board Finnish-flagged vessels in port, in effect keeping them in Finland until the dispute is resolved.
 From Thursday ships registered in other countries will also be prevented from loading and unloading their cargoes in Finland unless and until the postal workers' dispute is resolved.

New solidarity strikes from rail workers as postal union expands industrial action


Summary: The sun set in the village of Nuorgam at 12:07pm on Monday, not to return until well into the new year.

According to the University of Helsinki Almanac Office, residents of the village of Nuorgam -- located close to the northernmost point of Finland -- were treated to sunrise on Monday at 11:42am, and enjoyed just minutes of daylight before the sun dropped below the horizon at 12:07pm.
 Darkness will now reign there for the next 52 days, with the next sunrise not until January 18, 2020.
 Forty kilometres south, in the centre of Finland's northernmost municipality Utsjoki, the period of unbroken winter night, known as "kaamos" in Finnish, will start on Wednesday.
 For  Ellinor Guttorm Utsi , who lives just across the border in Nuorgam's neighbouring village of Hillagurrá, Norway, the start of the long polar night is a time for Christmas preparations and work with her family's reindeer.
 Aside from her reindeer-herding duties, Guttorm Utsi tries to fill the dark winter days and nights with chores, such as working on traditional Sámi handicrafts.
 "I get some of my livelihood from Sámi handicrafts. That's how I get ready for the Christmas season."
 Guttorm Utsi told Yle that she is not bothered by the almost two months of darkness, and sees beauty in the many different and changing colours of light each dawn.
 Ellinor Guttorm Utsi keeps herself busy during the dark period. Inger-Elle Suoninen / Yle
 "The sky will one day be bright blue and the other day a completely different colour. The colours change daily. Those who say it's dark here don't look around," Guttorm Utsi said, before explaining that many Sámi people closely follow the signs of nature in order to predict the weather of the coming days and weeks.
 Sverre Porsanger , a cultural worker from Utsjoki, agrees with this explanation, and added that he believes the weather over the "kaamos" period can be predicted from the weather on the morning it begins.
 On Monday, snow was falling as the sun set for the last time in weeks, which leads Porsanger to predict a mild yet overcast period ahead.

Long polar night begins in Finland’s far north


Summary: Tuesday’s newspapers are dominated by news of ongoing industrial strife.

Helsingin Sanomat  reports  on Tuesday that talks on resolving the  dispute in the postal sector  remain deadlocked.
 The talks were close to a resolution on Monday evening but then the two sides moved further apart, meaning that they reconvene on Tuesday at the National Labour Conciliator’s office.
 The issue remains the collective agreement applying to 700 parcel sorting office workers who the national postal company Posti has transferred to a subsidiary, worsening their terms and conditions.
 SDP on slippery slope
 Ilta-Sanomat  looks at  the political background to the strike. As Posti is a state-owned company, it falls under the purview of  Sirpa Paatero , the Minister for State Ownership Steering.
 She had said in parliament  and to media  that she wasn’t asked about the transfer of the 700 workers to an inferior collective agreement on wages and terms and conditions.
 However Prime Minister  Antti Rinne  had also claimed in parliament that the government had prevented Posti from transferring some 10,000 workers to the lower-pay package.
 The question IS not unreasonably poses is how the government can claim an active role in one case and ignorance in the other.
 It’s an especially thorny issue for Rinne, who previously headed up the Pro trade union, and Paatero, who is also in the union-backed Social Democrat Party.
 No pikkujoulu no party
 The deadlocked dispute  means  widespread disruption to flights as aviation workers continue sympathy action, and some early morning bus services were cancelled in Helsinki as drivers returned to work.
 Maritime workers are also taking action, refusing to join Finnish-flagged vessels and effectively keeping them in port.
 Iltalehti  reports  that this could have been a problem for the Maritime workers union, which is having a Christmas party on a ship on Tuesday.
 Happily for them, however, the ship on which they are partying is an Estonian-flagged vessel and able to continue on its merry way. Until Thursday when, if the dispute is not resolved, foreign-flagged ferries will also be left in port thanks to support action from dockworkers.
 Baltzar case shocks Finland
 Helsingin Sanomat on Sunday  published  an investigation into a theatre company run by  Veijo Baltzar , an internationally renowned Roma cultural figure.
 Reporters spoke to several women who said they were drawn into the Drom theatre company as teenagers through promises of stardom, only to find a controlling atmosphere.
 They described a set up in which teenage girls were brought in to the company and told to flirt with Baltzar, and his favoured young women were required to live at his home.
 One mother told the paper of her struggles to extract her daughter from the situation, and several women corroborated the claims about Baltzar’s  questionable methods .
 Baltzar was remanded into custody last week on suspicion of aggravated human trafficking.
 The story has rumbled on in the press, with senior politicians wondering how they did not know and others arguing that Baltzar hid in plain sight: in the time before #metoo, it seems nobody was listening.
 Paleface goes wobbly
 Finnish rapper  Paleface  (real name  Karri Miettinen ) has a new record out this week, and it’s a little bit different.
 Together with the Lauluvan unioni group he has recorded an album of songs dating from the Finnish sections of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) in North America.
 Helsingin Sanomat  reports  the background to the record, which came about when researcher Saijaleena Rantanen discovered a Finnish-language copy of an IWW songbook at Immigration History Research Centre in Minnesota.
 The album, ‘Tie Vapauteen’ or ‘road to freedom’, recalls the politics of Finnish immigrants in the United States and Canada in the early years of the 20th century.
 Many of them joined the anarcho-syndicalist IWW, members of which were colloquially known as ‘wobblies’, and published Finnish language newspapers and held Finnish language meetings and dances.
 EDIT 27.11.2019 An earlier version of this story incorrectly named the IWW as the 'International Workers of the World'. The right name is of course 'Industrial Workers of the World'.

Tuesday’s papers: Strike latest, ministerial misspeaking, a theatrical predator and Finnish wobblies


Summary: This week All Points North asks where Finland’s property market is headed and how young people can get a foothold.

The Finnish housing market is being reshaped by the forces of urbanisation and regionalisation.
 “The top trends right now in the Finnish property market are regionalisation and urbanisation,”  Juhana Brotherus , chief economist at mortgage lender Hypo, told Yle News.
 Finns have traditionally relied on home ownership as a means of building equity. But in many parts of the country this is no longer a reliable investment.
 “In some rural areas, properties have lost 25 percent of their value,” Brotherus explained, citing low population projections and migration to cities as reasons.
 This week,  Timo Metsola , chair of rental agency Vuokraturva, made headlines by saying that owning a home outside of Finland's urban centres was comparable to possessing a used car.
 “At least half of the country’s homes may never appreciate in value,” he wrote in a  blog post .
 Young people want to be homeowners too
 Getting a foothold on the property ladder is meanwhile increasingly out of reach for Finland's under-40s.
 The home ownership rate of millennials aged 30-34 has  fallen by ten percentage points  in the past decade from 58 to 48 percent, according to national number cruncher Statistics Finland.
 Young people are, however, still eager to become homeowners.
 “Studies show that young people in Finland want to buy property but can’t,”  Eero Löytömäki , chair of the Finnish National Youth Council Allianssi, which represents more than 100 youth groups, told Yle News.
 The divide between young and old is raising debate among Finland's political youth groups. To that end, the youth wings of several political parties have suggested  cutting pensions  in the name of generational equality as young adults worry whether comfortable pensions will be out of their reach as they struggle to find steady jobs and get a foot on the housing ladder.
 “The system isn’t fair for different generations,” Löytömäki added. “We should focus on reform.”
 Juhana Brotherus, chief economist for Hypo, and Eero Löytömäki from the Finnish National Youth Council Allianssi join us for this week’s  All Points North podcast . You can send comments or questions via WhatsApp on +358 44 421 0909, on our Facebook or Twitter accounts, or at yle.news@yle.fi.

APN this week: Surviving Finland’s housing market upheaval


Summary: We want your input. Tell us what you think of our services and what you’d like to see in future!

This week Yle launches a survey to consider how we might develop our English-language services.
 We want to better understand how our audience consumes news, and what they want from Yle News.
 Tell us how you like your news, what we might do to improve our offering and what you think we do well.
 The survey is open until 9 December, and the link can be shared directly until then.
 Answer the survey  here .

Yle News survey: Tell us what you think!


Summary: Renowned thespian Veijo Baltzar has been accused of manipulating and preying on teenagers in his theatre company.

Students who may be distressed in the aftermath of  the shocking scandal  surrounding theatre impressario  Veijo Baltzar  should seek help, said a letter the City of Helsinki has reportedly sent out to high schools.
 The internationally renowned cultural figure has been remanded in custody on suspicion of aggravated human trafficking.
 Baltzar has been accused of manipulating and preying on unsuspecting teenagers who were part of his theatre company, according to an investigative piece published by Helsingin Sanomat.
 Liisa Pohjolainen , executive director of education at Helsinki city, pointed out in the bulletin that high schools in the capital will not cooperate with Baltzar’s arts and culture association Drom.
 Tip-offs welcome
 Pohjolainen encouraged distressed students to turn to student welfare bodies.
 "Many young people are very sensitive and may feel anxious about such cases," Pohjolainen said.
 Tabloid Iltalehti has reported that the letter sent out to schools also included police contact information for students who have any information about suspected crimes.
 Pohjolainen said they decided to send out the message to encourage more young people to reach out to authorities during such times.
 "The threshold for young people to contact the authorities should be as low as possible when it comes to matters of sexual harassment," Pohjolainen said.
 Questionable teaching methods
 Helsingin Sanomat reported that Baltzar manipulated, controlled and made passes at underage girls and young women in his theatre company between 2011 and 2018. He has also been charged with aggravated human trafficking.
 Baltzar is politically well-connected and internationally-renowned and helped found the International Roma Writers Association (IRWA).
 In 2011, the Ministry of Education and Culture commissioned a study of the then cultural counsellor Baltzar's teaching methods at the Humak University of Applied Sciences in Helsinki (Humak). The purpose was to determine whether Baltzar's experiential teaching method could be used as a general model for art education in vocational schools.
 However, the report that came out in 2012 was very critical of his methods.  Anita Lehikoinen , the current secretary at the Ministry of Education, had said that Baltzar's methods were not theoretically sound and ethical. Lehikoinen was the head of the department of higher education and science at Humak during that time.
 Politicians explain
 The researchers in the report did not recommend further development of his teaching methods.
 After the news of Baltzar's charges broke out,  Paavo Arhinmäki , who was the Minister of Culture at the time, told Yle that he was shocked by the news and is wondering why he didn't get information about Baltzar's dubious methods.
 The then Minister of Education,  Jukka Gustafsson  also said he does not remember hearing anything about the report when it was released.
 However Lehikoinen has clarified that the report was not buried anywhere. "It's been public and visible, all these years."
 On Monday, Prime Minister  Antti Rinne  also told reporters that he was "really shocked" when the story broke out.

Theatre predator case: City officials urge youth to reach out


Summary: A Traficom survey suggests that 50 percent of Finnish residents are concerned about their devices' information security.

The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom has launched a new data security certification label for phones and other 'smart' devices. The agency said in a statement that the symbol, which will be affixed to certified devices, will help consumers make safer purchases for use at home.
 The certification symbol, which was launched on Tuesday, serves as a guarantee to consumers that a phone or other device’s basic information security features are in order, Traficom said. The label will be awarded to networked smart devices that pass the certification process.
 "The security of devices currently on the market varies and so far it there has been no easy way for consumers to distinguish between secure and unprotected devices. The data security symbol satisfies this need and makes the purchasing decision easier. It will make it easy for consumers to recognise a device that is safe enough," Traficom cyber security unit director  Jarkko Saarimäki  said in the statement.
 Three devices certified
 With the proliferation of smart homes, more devices are being connected to the internet with their data relayed to different services. Because devices are also constantly collecting data about their users, it is even more crucial to ensure that the information they gather is secure, Traficom noted.
 When homeowners add devices to the network – for example smart televisions, smartphones and toys – any data they gather must be secured to avoid data leaks or misuse or even to prevent devices being taken over by external parties.
 In autumn 2019 Traficom conducted a survey of consumer attitudes to smart device purchases and use as well as their aspirations. One central finding of the survey was that every other respondent claimed to be concerned about data security in smart devices.
 Additionally, one in three said that it was extremely important to have access to easily-understood information about devices’ security.
 The data security guarantee symbol was developed in Finland toward the end of 2018.
 The label has so far been granted to the Cozify Hub for managing smart home devices, teleoperator DNA’s Wattinen smart heating service for flats and sports and fitness tracker firm Polar’s Electron Ignite fitness smart watch.

Finland launches data security guarantee label


Summary: Cityjet currently employs 40 pilots at its Helsinki hub.

Irish airline Cityjet has announced plans to slash the number of pilots on its payroll in Finland, according to a statement by the Finnish Pilots’ Association, FPA.
 The decision follows the conclusion of redundancy talks in which the airline said it would offload two-thirds of 40 pilots in Helsinki as well as all other flight crew.
 During the negotiations, Cityjet offered pilots comparable work in Stockholm or Copenhagen. However, FPA said that the offer would not work for all parties as the carrier had recently hired new pilots.
 Cityjet is a subsidiary of the Irish airline Cityjet DAC. It operates flights out of Finland for Scandinavian Airlines or SAS and has offices in Helsinki and Stockholm.
 In spring 2015 the airline purchased the entire share capital of budget airline Blue 1.

Irish airline Cityjet to sack two-thirds of pilots in Finland


Summary: Eagle Owls plan Russian Midsummer after European Championship 2020 group stage revealed.

Finland's football fans will have to brush up on their Russian next year after the Euro2020 draw gave them two games in Saint Petersburg, the nearest host city to Finland, either side of the Midsummer holiday weekend.
 In a ceremony in Bucharest on Saturday the 'Eagle Owls' were drawn to play against Denmark, Russia and Belgium in Group B of the 2020 European Championship finals.
 The good news for Finnish fans is that they will not have to travel very far to support their team in their first ever finals tournament — at least in the early stages —with the Group B games taking place in St Petersburg and Copenhagen.
 The bad news is that it's a very tough draw. In two of their matches they will be the away team, facing Denmark and Russia in Denmark and Russia. The third match is against Belgium, who are currently ranked number one in the world by the global governing body Fifa.
 "Exciting and inspiring time"
 Finland’s captain  Tim Sparv , who plays his club football for the Danish side Midtjylland in the Superliga, told Yle he is especially looking forward to the opening game.
 "It will be a very significant match for me personally. The Danes think they will win easily. I want to put them in their place," Sparv said.
 Although Sparv concedes Finland have been handed a tough draw, he believes the team should aim for the "ambitious but realistic" target of qualifying from the group and playing in the final stages.
 Story continues after photo.
 Finland men's team captain Tim Sparv. Tomi Hänninen
 "This is an exciting and inspiring time," Sparv said. "Playing in the the finals has been a big dream of ours for years, so it would seem silly to go there and not aim to reach the knockout stages."
 Finland kick off their campaign against the 1992 European Champions Denmark on Saturday June 13 in Copenhagen’s Parken Stadium.
 Next up for the Huuhkajat will be a trip to face Russia in St Petersburg — located a mere 300 kilometres from Helsinki —where the 64,000 capacity Krestovsky Stadium will host the second group game on Wednesday June 17.
 Finland's final group game will also be in St Petersburg, on Monday June 22 against Belgium, currently the best team in the world according to governing body FIFA’s official rankings.
 If Finland were to finish at the top of this group, they would then face one of the third placed teams from Groups A, D, E or F in Bilbao on June 28. A second place finish will see them face the runners-up of Group A on June 27 in Amsterdam. A strong third place finish would mean a trip to Glasgow on June 30 to face the winners of Group E.
 Scramble for tickets to begin this week
 Finnish fans -- along with supporters of the other 19 qualified teams -- will get the chance to buy tickets via the  UEFA website  when they go on sale at 3pm Finnish time on Wednesday 4 December.
 UEFA have allocated 14,000 tickets for fans of participating teams playing in the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, and 20,000 tickets for the Krestovsky Stadium in St Petersburg.
 According to the UEFA website, prices for the group stage matches in both cities will start at 50 euros, and over half the tickets being made available on Wednesday will be in the cheapest price category.

Euro2020 draw puts Finland in tough group


Summary: The ombudsman's ruling follows taxpayer complaints over having to pay back taxes due to incorrect decisions.

The Finnish Tax Administration’s practice of using automated computer programmes to process income tax returns violates the constitution and does not represent "good management", according to deputy parliamentary ombudsman  Maija Sakslin .
 In 2018, the deputy ombudsman called on the tax authority to provide a report on the use of automation to process tax returns. That request was based on complaints filed by individual taxpayers about inaccurate decisions that required them to pay back taxes.
 The tax authority has been using automation to process tax returns filed by individuals and to make decisions on tax refunds or arrears in cases where no changes to the forms were required.
 According to Sakslin, the problem turns on the fact that there is no legislation to regulate automation or that would safeguard customers' legal protections. She also called for a report on possible new regulations that might be required.
 Tax administration director general  Markku Heikura  said the deputy ombudsman’s ruling came as a surprise to him, especially since the automated processing of personal income tax returns began as far back as 2005 -- 2007 and legal issues were weighed at the time.
 "This is certainly a huge surprise," Heikura told Yle in response to the deputy ombudsman’s ruling.
 The tax authority chief said that the agency had been able to reduce payroll costs by about 2,000 person-years by introducing automated processes. He added that the authority cannot afford to pay for human effort to do the same amount of work.
 "This has resulted in significant cost savings and at the same time accelerated the speed of tax decisions," he added.
 Names behind tax decisions?
 Sakslin’s lengthy ruling was published on Tuesday but Heikura received an advance copy. He said that the problem might be due to the fact that current legislation does not refer to tax rulings based on automated processes.
 However he said that the deputy ombudsman’s decision doesn’t necessarily mean that the authority should stop using automation.
 “We must now analyse what this will mean in practice, but my understanding is that one solution would be to amend legislation to include automated processing of mass data," he suggested.
 Heikura said that the idea of completely prohibiting automation for processing tax returns is unthinkable. He also stressed that the process does not involve artificial intelligence.
 "We use automation, which is not influenced by any algorithm. Rather it is fed with certain parameters. This enhances the equal treatment of taxpayers," he pointed out.
 He said he was also perplexed by the fact that the tax authority’s working methods had been reviewed in the context of other legislation "and there had never been any comments". The first time the authority came under scrutiny in this manner was in 1992.
 "Perhaps the aim here is to ensure that there is someone’s name behind any decision," he speculated.

Parliamentary ombudsman: Automated tax return processing unconstitutional


Summary: Up to 1,500 employees will go on strike on Wednesday over a new contract offering lower pay and shorter annual leave.

Schools, daycare centres, public transport and port activities in Turku will be widely disrupted by a three-day strike by trade unions against the City of Turku and its public bodies, starting Wednesday.
 The Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors (JHL) and The Federation of Public and Private Sector Employees (JYTY) are launching the industrial action to protest a September decision by city-owned service company Arkea to switch staff to a cheaper collective agreement.
 The change would lower workers' wages and reduce annual leave entitlements.
 No risk to life, safety or property
 JHL regional head  Maaret Laakso  has estimated that up to 1,500 employees will participate in the industrial action.
 In a release issued on Tuesday, the unions stated that the strike applies to members employed by the City of Turku and the following companies: Turku Energia, infrastructure firm Kuntec, maintenance firms Kaarea and Kaarea Kunnossapito, Lounais-Suomen Jätehuolto waste management company, Port of Turku, public transportation provider Turku Region Traffic, Turku Region Water and waste water processing company Turun Seudun Puhdistamo.
 The strike will begin on Wednesday 27 November and will end on Friday 29 November. Earlier this month, the unions had  conducted a previous work stoppage  on a smaller scale.
 The strike won’t endanger life, safety or property, union officials stated in the release.
 "For example, food security for the elderly is guaranteed like it was in the previous strike," Laakso said.
 However, meals will not be delivered to schools and daycare centres. JHL estimates that a few daycare centres may remain shut during the strike.
 Bus services to take a hit
 Public transport director  Sirpa Korte  said the strike will affect major bus lines in the city.
 Turku Region Traffic website  stated that Lines 1, 3, 30, 36, 50, 51, 53, 54, 55, 55A, 56 and 58 will not run from the 27-29 November. Other Turku region traffic routes will be served normally.
 In addition, port operations, libraries and swimming pools will also be affected.
 Officials at Turku Energia said that the strike will not affect its customers — electricity and heat distribution will function normally —unless failures occur.
 Turku Energia HR manager  Tiina Aho  said 50 employees, mainly mechanics, will participate in the strike and that efforts are being made to organise substitutes in the event of power failures or outages. However, Aho said that personnel from temp agencies will not be used.

Three-day strike to affect public transport, schools, daycare in Turku


Summary: Most papers reported Wednesday that a settlement in Finland's postal workers strike may be seen during the morning hours.

Maa- ja metsätaloustuottajain keskusliitto (MTK)

Finland's largest circulation daily  Helsingin Sanomat  was among the paper reporting that the postal workers strike, which has spawned  widespread labour action , edged closer to a settlement late on Tuesday.
 National Labour Conciliator  Vuokko Piekkala  put forward a new compromise proposal aimed at ending the strike. Union and employer representatives were scheduled to reconvene for talks at the Conciliator’s office at 10am on Wednesday.
 Neither side to the dispute was willing to divulge the contents of the settlement proposal.
 Pressure on employers has grown, with a number of other unions taking action in support of postal workers. If no settlement is reached, a work stoppage by longshoremen threatens to close down the nation's ports on Thursday morning.
 If it continues
 The newsstand tabloid  Iltalehti  has some comforting news for rail travellers. If the postal strike is not settled and  train departures are cancelled  due to labour action in support of postal workers, ticket holders will be able to get a full refund.
 The rail workers union RAU has issued warnings of work stoppages that could affect long-distance passenger trains on the 3rd and 9th of December.
 A spokesperson for the state railway firm VR told Iltalehti that in the case of cancellations, ticket holder will be able to either reschedule at no extra cost, or receive a full refund.
 Finland's falling appeal
 The economic and business daily  Kauppalehti  writes that immigration to Finland from other EU countries is at its lowest for over a decade.
 The paper credits  Juhana Brotherus , the chief economist for the Hypo financial services group, with compiling figures showing that immigration from the EU area into Finland was last at the current level in 1997.
 Commenting on his findings, Brotherus told Kauppalehti that an ageing Finland is sorely in need of  work-based immigration .
 He made special note of the net decline in immigration from Estonia. "The turnaround in the flow of Estonia migration is one big factor. The background can be found in the country's strong economic upswing," said Juhana Brotherus.
 He went on to note that while other EU countries have been recruiting skilled employees from abroad, Finland has really not made an effort to do so.
 "Right now, the IT sector is boosting the economy. Skilled workers in this field can afford to choose where they go. Finland, cold, with few English-speaking support networks, stressing Finnish-language skills, is fighting against the tide," Brotherus told Kauppalehti.
 "Finland needs to  step up its game , if it wants to even stay where it is," he concluded.
 Lacking diversity in higher education
 Helsingin Sanomat carries  a feature story  about how students with a foreign background (by which HS says it means people whose parents were born abroad) are underrepresented in institutes of higher education, both academic and vocational, in the capital region.
 Based on data Helsingin Sanomat requested from Statistics Finland, the article says that between 2010 and 2018, the number of students of foreign background at these universities and colleges grew from 7.2 percent to 10.8 percent.
 Despite this growth, there continues to be a mismatch between the number of students in the category, and the proportion of residents of foreign background in the Helsinki region. That group has group has grown from 10.5 percent of the population in 2010 to 16.8 percent in 2018.
 According to Helsingin Sanomat, one in six pupils in Helsinki schools is of foreign background.
 Farmers and climate
 The agricultural sector newspaper  Maaseudun Tulevaisuus  reports that the head of the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners (MTK) forecasts that Finland needs to boost the climate-sustainable food production by 50 percent.
 MTK chairman  Juha Marttila  told a gathering in Helsinki on Tuesday emission from agriculture can be cut in half at the same time through more efficient production, carbon traps and the use of renewable energy sources. He also stated that while the general public in Finland has awakened to the threats of climate change only in the past few years, the farmers' union has been actively engaged in the debate since the 1990's
 "There is now a panic, but that won't help in doing anything rational. One should be calm and seek solutions," said Marttila.
 He urged agricultural producers to  defend their profession  on social media, to "fire off facts", even though they can expect some aggressive responses.
 "It is a marginal group on social media raising a ruckus about agriculture. Don't give in. We are on the right side of history," said MTK chairman Juha Marttila.

Wednesday papers: Strike settlement near, falling immigrant appeal, farmers and climate