The week-long strike by municipal workers appears to continue from Tuesday, May 3rd Elina Pylkkänenan official in charge of the controversial conciliation committee said Friday he did not intend to ask the minister for a new postponement.
The measure will lead to large-scale closures of schools, kindergartens and other services such as libraries and museums in 10 cities across the country.
The targets are Helsinki, Espoo, Kauniainen, Vantaa, Oulu, Rovaniemi, Jyväskylä, Tampere, Turku and Kuopio.
About 81,000 workers are expected to take part in the strike, organized by the public sector unions Juko, Jyty and JHL.
Most cities will close primary schools and most kindergartens during a week-long strike, although primary schools may continue to operate on a limited schedule in some cities. High schools and vocational schools can also provide distance learning.
Friday was the last day to prevent a strike outside the metropolitan area, as a settlement proposal must be made three days before the strike is scheduled to begin.
"It is impossible to propose an agreement" However, Pylkkänen said. "Our work continues."
It is also not possible in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area to prevent the strike from proceeding as Minister of Labor Tuula Haatainen (SDP) postponed the planned outing earlier in April and cannot do so a second time.
The main issue in the dispute is pay. Trade unions are demanding a multi-year wage agreement that includes additional increases in addition to the normal increase in the cost of living. Nurses have asked for 3.6 per cent a year for an extra five years, while the public sector union JHL wants 4.7 per cent.
Employer groups have argued that these wage demands would be unsustainable for public finances.
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