Press releases

Employers who face difficulties recruiting workers are not necessarily more willing than other employers to hire persons over the age of 55. These employers invest in older workers only if they have a more positive perception of older workers than employers have on average. This is evident in a fresh research article by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

In 2022, the median insured monthly earnings of employees were 3,000 euros. For the self-employed and farmers, the median monthly insured incomes were 1,350 euros. The largest earnings were received by those in the age group 45–49 years, recent statistics of the Finnish Centre for Pensions reveal.

Despite the shortage of skilled workers in Finland, the country’s Government makes it difficult for (labour) immigrants to enter the country, get permanent residence and citizenship, argues Senior Researcher Pasi Saukkonen (Urban Research and Statistics Unit of the City of Helsinki). More important than the number of immigrants is their successful integration, but the Finnish Government’s cuts in social security and required resources for integration affects integration unfavourably, Saukkonen argues.

Half of the newly retired old-age pensioners are interested in working in retirement. According to a survey conducted by the Finnish Centre for Pensions, most persons who have worked in retirement have continued working for the same employer and with similar tasks. The work is often irregular and occasional.

The Ministry for Social Affair and Health has confirmed the life expectancy coefficient for 2024. The coefficient will reduce starting pensions by 5.3 per cent, which is less than in 2023. The lower life expectancy coefficient is due to high mortality during the corona pandemic.

This year, Finland ranked sixth in the international Global Pension Index comparison. For the tenth time in a row, Finland received the highest index value in the integrity sub-index (reliable and transparent governance).

Every third woman and every second man aged 35 in Finland are childless although Finns dream of having two children. Consortium Director Marika Jalovaara (FLUX, University of Turku) argues that it’s not about employment or income but about impressions and social capital. Online dating may favour the high-educated.

Work that is found meaningful and perceived to be less hectic and not involving too many changes is linked to late retirement. This is evident from a survey conducted by the Finnish Centre for Pensions that examined the perceptions of persons who retired on an old-age pension between 2019 and 2021.

Finnish citizens’ trust in the pension system remains high, according to the Pension Barometer conducted by the Finnish Centre for Pensions. Yet, the confidence has decreased somewhat compared to previous Pension Barometers. Two thirds of the respondents trust the pension system and almost as many think pension assets are managed in a responsible way.

The gradual increase of the retirement age agreed on in the 2017 pension reform has considerably raised the employment rate of those approaching their retirement age. At the same time, unemployment and disability retirement have also clearly increased, as revealed by a new study by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.