Swedish People’s Party pushes for labor migration reform amid government reluctance in Finland

The government coalition partners are showing reluctance towards the Swedish People’s Party (RKP) proposal to reform labor migration policies. During their summer meeting on Tuesday, the RKP suggested eliminating the labor market impact assessment for foreign workers. Party Chairman Anders Adlercreutz emphasized their goal of stabilizing net immigration to Finland at a minimum of 40,000 annually. However, the Finns Party opposes this idea, and the National Coalition’s Minister of Labor, Arto Satonen, also questions the relevance of such a numerical target.

Last year saw a record high in net immigration to Finland, with nearly 58,000 individuals, largely due to an influx of Ukrainians. The Ministry of Finance predicts a decline in net immigration, estimating 30,000 for the current year and dropping to 15,000 in subsequent years, returning to levels seen in the 2010s.

Finland’s population growth has long relied on net migration from abroad, with a continuous rise in net immigration recorded since 1981. Since 2015, deaths have outnumbered births annually. Minister Satonen highlighted the need for labor migration due to demographic shifts, pointing out that without it, workforce numbers could decrease by 10,000 to 15,000 annually.

The RKP’s proposal for maintaining net immigration at 40,000 faces strong opposition from the Finns Party, which argues that this number exceeds current birth rates and that existing immigrants should be prioritized for employment first.

The government also faces criticism over plans for a three-month unemployment rule for immigrants, with current job market conditions affecting the demand for foreign labor. The RKP’s suggestions to drop labor market assessments were met with resistance, with concerns that such changes could undermine Finnish labor standards and lead to exploitation of local workers.