Finland Times

 

Prime Minister Juha Sipilä , Minister of the Interior Petteri Orpo and Employment and Justice minister Jari Lindström (right) met the Microsoft's chief union steward and Microsoft's local management in Salo city hall on Monday, July 13, 2015. Photo – Lehtikuva.

After the marathon-length negotiations with Greece, Prime Minister Juha Sipilä was on Monday forced to deal directly with domestic problems during a visit to Microsoft’s factory in Salo. 

 

The premier along with Interior Minister Petteri Orpo and Labour Minister Jari Lindström discussed an eight-point programme to enable those made redundant to get back to work, following Microsoft’s redundancies at the Salo factory.   

 

Minister for Employment and Justice Jari Lindstrom explained that the list contained the creation of start-ups and ways in which older companies could attract expertise. 

 

In addition, they covered topics such as workers’ professional skills and the maintenance and renewal of their expertise, Microsoft’s staff activation, and regional economic development strategies.  

 

During the visit the prime minister and the other ministers met, amongst others, Microsoft’s chief union steward and local management.

 

They further defined their semi-abstract work list. For example, there was a proposal that earnings-related unemployment benefits could be received as start-up cash, if preferred. 

 

“We are investigating this as an option,” said Sipilä.

 

Sipilä had previously proposed a severance pay model to be paid by Microsoft which could have been, if necessary, paid to the former employees to set up their own companies, from which the employees would have paid income tax. Some experts had thought the model to be fiscally problematic; however, the original model had remained on the ministers’ agenda. 

 

According to Lindström and Sipilä, the trip’s main purpose was to explore the situation of workers, so that the government could remove employment barriers that might be in the way.