The aim of the training compensation is to help employers provide their employees with training that develops their professional skills. Even in the healthcare, social welfare and education sectors, digitalisation and advances in research and care methods continue to increase the need for employees to maintain and develop their skills.
The system has worked well and been necessary in the healthcare and social welfare sector, and approximately three fourths of the compensations paid have been used within municipalities and wellbeing services counties.
– I wonder how the Government imagines that we maintain our competence if such a significant support for the maintenance of professional competence is taken away? Combined with the cancellation of the adult education allowance, the effects on the healthcare, social welfare and education sectors is disastrous. Is this the Government’s way of prolonging careers?, asks Tehy President Millariikka Rytkönen.
The Government’s proposal contains a misleading assessment that the cancellation of the training compensation would not cause a decrease in the education of the workforce. Tehy considers this argument to be completely untrue. In the current financial situation of wellbeing services counties, it is clear that the change would decrease the access of personnel to training.
– Where should the money for training be taken from, at a time when some wellbeing services counties are having serious trouble financing the basic healthcare and social welfare services? The proposal is far from the current reality of the sector, says Rytkönen.
Foundation for good legislation lost
The drafting of the law did not follow the foundation for good legislative practice, as e.g. the circulation for comment mostly took place during holiday season.
– Unfortunately, Orpo’s Government has remained true to its style in lawmaking. Employee associations have not had a real possibility to affect the contents of the proposal, and the preparations were made at an extremely tight schedule, Rytkönen says.
Tehy states that the Government has also processed the training compensation along with the other compensations for wellbeing services counties, which is misleading.
The wellbeing services counties have an obligation to organise the mandatory training related to healthcare and social welfare sector education, along with the related teaching and guidance, for example. However, these compensations have nothing to do with the training compensation.
You can read Tehy’s statement in full from our website (in Finnish): Lausunnot ja kannanotot
Further information:
Leading Legal Counsel Jarkko Pehkonen, tel. 040 5315464, [email protected]