Translation Industry Professionals in the labour market

Translation Industry Professionals (Käännösalan asiantuntijat KAJ) is a trade organisation for over 2100 translators, interpreters and other experts in the field of translation and multilingual communication. Translation Industry Professionals is a part of Akava Special Branches, which is comprised of 25 independent member organisations. All individual members are members of Akava Special Branches through Translation Industry Professionals. Akava Special Branches is a part of Akava, The Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland.
 
Translation Industry Professionals’ board is in charge of supervising the professional interests in the field of translation and comments on the statements from ministries and contributes to the preparation of legislation and other regulations. It gives background support to Akava Special Branches in developing occupational life and solving problem points in the occupational life. Translation Industry Professionals’ members receive supervision of their professional interests and expert help and many other membership benefits through their own organization and through Akava Special Branches.

The Finnish labour market has three parties

The Finnish labour market system is based on agreements between the employers and employees. Both parties are represented by their own organisations, labour market organisations, i.e. central organisations of wage earners (AKAVA, STTK and SAK) and the central organisations of the employers.

The income agreements concluded at the central organisation level are collectively called general incomes policy settlements when the Finnish government is a party in the agreement. In this case, economical, tax-related and socio-political actions have been agreed to in addition to the income solution.

Trade unions (e.g. Akava Special Branches) and employer unions make collective labour agreements and collective bargaining agreements on civil servant salaries.
 
During the years, significant improvements in working conditions have been achieved with the agreements - improvements that today seem self-evident:

the employer will collect the membership fees of trade unions directly from the salary (1969)

the right to assembly at the workplace (1970)

vacation bonus pay (1972)

extension of maternity leave (1974)

winter leave (1977)

sickness benefit renovation (1981-1982)

unemployment benefit renovation (1984)

shortening of working time (1985)

agreement on employees’ representative (1991)

sabbatical leave (1995)

development of working life (1996, 2001)

employee pension renovation (2002)

new occupational safety law (2002)

morning and afternoon care for school children (2003)

protection from change (2005)

working time reserve (2005)

orderer responsibility (2005)