What's it about: In the future, third-country nationals residing in Finland with a work-based residence permit must find a new job within three months after the termination of their previous employment. A separate regulation has been established for some groups of workers, allowing a maximum unemployment period of six months.
Moniheli's statement: Moniheli ry appreciates the opportunity to comment on the draft law related to the three-month employment rule for foreign workers. Moniheli is Finland's largest multicultural network, with around 160 member organizations. Many of our members provide support to non-native speakers in finding employment by helping them build networks, mentoring job seekers, or assisting with tasks like creating a CV. A significant part of this support also involves familiarizing individuals with the culture, including providing information on how the job market works in Finland and how to search for jobs here.
These organizations frequently encounter factors that hinder the employment of non-native speakers. Some of these factors also affect Finnish citizens with foreign-sounding names but are particularly pronounced for foreign job seekers. These challenges include, for example, a lack of Finnish language skills, unfamiliarity with Finnish recruitment practices, and a lack of networks that facilitate employment.
At the same time, beyond individual characteristics, structural barriers also hinder employment in ways that individual job seekers have little control over. According to the MoniSuomi (2022) report produced by THL, a quarter of immigrants have experienced discrimination in the workplace, and nearly half (46%) of men of African descent have faced discrimination. Moniheli has criticized the government's program for placing the burden of societal structural challenges on the individual, and we see the same issue continuing in this legislative amendment.
Moniheli believes that the proposed law does not sufficiently justify the choice of the three-month time frame. The proposal states that the three-month period is based on a practice introduced by the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) in 2023, but Moniheli argues that a practice based on potential processing delays and process economy considerations by the agency may not necessarily be in the best interest of the job seeker. More detailed information is needed on the average duration of job-seeking processes for non-native speakers across different sectors, and the time allowed for finding employment should be determined based on this information. According to Moniheli's assessment, the time needed for employment is, in reality, longer than three months.
Currently, there is no regulation in Finland regarding the timeframe within which a person residing in the country with a work-based residence permit should be removed after the termination of employment. Moniheli believes that extending the time period enhances the legal protection of the resident and clarifies the regulations. At the same time, Moniheli sees risks in the implementation of the regulation. Recent changes in immigration-related legislation (such as the Citizenship Act, expedited asylum process, etc.) have significantly increased Migri's workload. The notification, monitoring, and sanction procedures related to the three-month rule will add to the administrative burden and likely incur additional costs. Moniheli believes that without significant investment in the agency's resources, it will be challenging to adhere to the required deadlines under this regulation. Inadequate monitoring of the employer's reporting obligations is dangerous from the worker's perspective, as it creates unequal conditions for the oversight of the continuation of the residence permit.
The three-month rule is part of a series of reforms that increasingly make the lives of immigrants in Finland more uncertain and monitored. Moniheli believes that the cumulative effect of these reforms is negative for Finland's image. Although these reforms may not significantly change the current situation, as is apparently the case with the three-month rule, the message conveyed by major changes is clear. Current regulations are being created where every immigrant is seen either as a threat or a commodity to be discarded after use. Such messaging does not make Finland an attractive country for foreign experts.
Moniheli thanks the Ministry of Employment and the Economy for the open preparation of the reform and for the multilingual communication. The English-language hearing session is an excellent way to directly engage with the target group of this reform, which due to its status, might otherwise be underrepresented in the planning process.
