Finland is a Nordic country in northern Europe, bordered by Sweden, Norway, and Russia. Since WWII the country has rapidly industrialized and built a welfare state with a high income per capita. Finland is considered to be the world’s happiest country and boasts extensive civil liberties and strong economic growth.

There is no legally-mandated minimum wage in Finland, but collective bargaining mandates minimum salaries. The average minimum wage is EUR 2,124 per month. Standard working hours are 40 hours per week at 8 hours per day.

Any work done past this is considered overtime with a maximum of 250 hours per year. Overtime is paid at 150%-200% of the regular salary.

Parental Leave

Pregnant employees are entitled to 105 days of unpaid maternity leave, starting between 30 – 50 days before the due date (no less than 2 weeks before the due date). At this time employees can claim benefits from Finnish Social Insurance, up to 70% of the previous year's earnings.

An employer can opt to pay a full or partial salary during the leave, and social security will pay allowances to the employer. Fathers can receive up to 54 days of unpaid paternity leave, taken before the baby’s 2nd birthday.

Sick Leave

Employees in Finland can take 9 days of sick leave each year after working at a company for 1 month, which is paid at 100% of the regular salary. Employees who have worked at their companies for less than 1 month will receive 50% of their wages during sick leave.

Paid Leave

There are 12 public holidays in Finland, and employees can receive 30 days of paid time off each year accrued at 2.5 days per month. Employees can also receive hospitalization leave, education leave, and childcare leave.

Process

Employment contracts can be terminated with just cause (such as misconduct, negligence, fraud, or other work-related offenses).

Notice Period

Notice periods depend on how long an employee has worked at a company:

• 0-1 years = 14 days
• 1-4 years = 1 month
• 4-8 years = 2 months
• 8-12 years = 4 months
• 12+ years = 6 months

Severance Pay

While there is no severance pay required by law, employers must pay out any unused paid time off days.

While a 13th month salary is not required, 13th month bonus payments are usually paid out before the holidays.