Is New Year’s Day a paid holiday?
New Year’s Day, which is January 1, is an official public holiday in Finland. This means that it is a public holiday when most people are not at work. But is New Year’s Day a paid holiday? The answer depends on several factors, such as the employment contract, the collective agreement and the employer’s practices.
Collective agreements and legislation
In Finland, collective agreements (TES) define many conditions of working life, including paid holidays. In most collective agreements, New Year’s Day is defined as a paid holiday. This means that employees will receive their normal wages even if they do not work on that day.
Employment contract
The employment contract can also separately define how public holidays are handled. If the employment contract states that New Year’s Day is a paid holiday, the employee will be paid for that day. It is important to check your own employment contract and collective agreement in order to know what conditions have been agreed upon in them.
Employer policies
In some cases, the employer can offer paid days off, even if they are not specifically mentioned in the employment contract or collective agreement. However, this is up to the employer to decide, and it is not a legal obligation.
Exceptions
There are also sectors where employees may have to work on public holidays, such as healthcare, emergency services and the restaurant industry. In these cases, employees are usually paid an increased wage for work done on public holidays. This compensation can be, for example, a 100% increase to the normal hourly wage.
Summary
Generally speaking, New Year’s Day is a paid holiday in Finland, but this depends on the employment contract, the collective agreement and the employer’s practices. It is recommended to check your own employment contract and collective agreement and talk to your employer if you are unsure about the matter.
More information on the subject can be found, for example, from the following sources:
