Finland Times

The trial of a case lodged against Rinne, also the chairman of Social Democratic Party (SDP), on charge of violating law during labour disputes in 2012 began on

Tuesday, reported the Finnish language newspapers Talouselämä and Iltalehti.

The 16 companies under the association blamed that the then Trade Union Pro chairman Rinne violated the law on mediation during labour disputes in the spring of 2012 and decided to call a strike.

“The strike notifications were given correctly and on time. But the employers tried to force their workers to train other employees to do the strikers’ jobs. It was not right,” Rinne told the Iltalehti. “That is why we had to move the strike forward by a few days,” he added.

The Talouselämä reported that the forest industries are demanding approximately 700,000 euros in damages from Rinne and the Trade Union Pro. Trade Union

Pro contests the claim, and they think the rule about strike notifications is outdated.

According to Trade Union Pro’s lawyer Kari Tiainen, failure to comply with the notified strike time is a centuries-old custom in Finland, and it shouldn’t lead to criminal or civil liability.

The Supreme Court earlier had absolved Rinne from similar accusations in a technology industry case.