In 2022, the median regular working hours income for employees in Finland's municipal sector was €3,124 per month, as per the latest statistics from Statistics Finland's municipal sector wages report. The figure represents the monthly wages of full-time, fully salaried employees. Notably, the median income for women was €3,064, while for men, it stood at €3,504.
Healthcare professionals like nurses and practical nurses earned a median income of €3,302 and €3,015 respectively.
In contrast, general practitioners, consultants, and specialist doctors had a significantly higher median income of €6,589 per month. In the education sector, primary school teachers earned €3,754, secondary and high school teachers received €4,148, whereas kindergarten teachers and daycare childcare workers had median earnings of €2,960 and €2,461 respectively.
“Median earnings for regular working hours best reflect the general level of wages," explained Johanna Arvonen, Senior Statistician at Statistics Finland. Additionally, Heli Udd, another Senior Statistician, informed that in 2022, municipal sector employees received an average of €511 in regular bonuses and €134 in irregular bonuses per month.
The statistics reflect wages paid in October, excluding retroactive payments and other bonuses paid over more extended periods. "The indices for wage levels and regular earnings growth, excluding performance-based bonuses and one-off payments in collective agreements, have shown an increase. In the municipal sector, the regular earnings index rose by 2.8% in the last quarter of 2022 compared to the previous year, higher than the overall 2.4% increase across all sectors," detailed Jukka Tapio, another Senior Statistician.
Following the significant restructuring of local governance with social, health, and rescue services, along with their employees moving to 21 wellbeing services counties at the beginning of 2023, Helsinki and Åland remained outside this transition. According to Statistics Finland's employment statistics, there were 236,330 employees in wellbeing area administration as of June 2023, compared to 276,916 in municipal sectors.
With the reform, women constituted 84% of the workforce in the wellbeing area administration, higher than the 75% in other municipal sectors. Udd, participating in a project to revise Statistics Finland's labor market statistics following the social and healthcare reform, highlighted the need for detailed information on these changes. "Current data from the income register, serving as a source for many statistics, still differs from official wage data, but efforts are underway to align them," she added.
This report underscores the ongoing shifts and diversifications in Finland's municipal sector, reflecting broader trends and transformations in public service employment and compensation.
HT
