Healthcare workers union opposes layoffs at HUS

Change negotiations will result in the dismissal of approximately 800 staff in the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District (HUS).

File photo. The HUS hospital in Meilahti. Image: Paavo Jantunen / Yle

The Finnish Union of Health and Social Care Professionals (Tehy) has strongly criticized the outcome of negotiations change closed today by the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District (HUS).

Tehy issued a statement saying the negotiations will result in the termination of employment for approximately 800 staff, the majority of whom are healthcare workers.

According to the healthcare workers union Tehy, the situation could worsen if some workers refuse to accept transfers to new locations within Uusimaa, leading to additional layoffs. In addition, the planned layoffs of department secretaries will shift their duties to the remaining healthcare staff, significantly increasing their workload.

“HUS is unable to evaluate its activities as a whole. Different units are implementing changes with their eyes closed, and no one is taking responsibility for the entire organization,” says Tehy chairman Millariikka Rytkönen said in a statement.

“If these plans go ahead as outlined, it will create an unprecedented mess and healthcare workers will suffer, contrary to what the employer initially claimed.”

Tehy has announced his intention to investigate the legality of the process, claiming that HUS did not fully comply with legal requirements during the negotiations.

The Public and Welfare Sectors Union (JHL) has also criticized the redundancies. JHL Chairman Håkan Ekström stated that it is inconceivable that cutting hundreds of employees will not affect the quality of care.

HUS aims for annual savings of 50 million euros. Previous reports indicated that the restructuring talks involved as many as 28,000 employees, with a reduction target of around 990 full-time equivalents.

HUS CEO Matti Bergendahl Yle previously said the layoffs were inevitable due to significant budget constraints. HUS also faces an ongoing nursing shortage, adding to the pressure on the healthcare system.