An acute shortage of skilled workers threatens the future of the Finnish forestry sector, and Finland needs to recruit more workers from abroad to ensure its survival. That is according to a new report published on Wednesday by Tapio, a forestry management and consultancy firm.
The report states that the sector needs to recruit up to 1,000 new workers every year to compensate for the number of retirements and other factors reducing the number of skilled workers. The consultancy firm further warns that the shortage may affect not only forest management work, but also the industry’s timber harvesting and transport sectors.
Finland forestry companies often hire seasonal workers from abroad, particularly non-EU countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, to fill the skilled labour gap. Although this has provided a temporary solution, Tapio’s report suggests that state funding should be provided for these seasonal workers to receive short-term vocational training, emphasising occupational safety and adapting to Finnish working life.
In addition, the firm notes that the requirement for fluent Finnish language skills has limited the chances of foreigners already living in Finland to land a job in the sector. Tapio, therefore, calls for more forestry-focused training courses to be provided in English.
The challenges facing Finland’s forestry industry are further exacerbated by the finding that the capacity of Finnish forests to absorb planet-warming emissions was previously overestimated. This has led to widespread calls for the industry to operate more climate-friendly, including in a recent report by the Climate Panel.
Tapio’s report was conducted in conjunction with Metsäteho, an R&D company owned by forestry sector organisations and companies, and funded by the Metsämiesten Säätiö foundation.
