UPM Timber and the Finnish Industrial Union have signed a business-specific collective agreement concerning UPM's sawmill business. The new agreement is valid for three years starting 1 January 2022.
Negotiations started in May and the agreement was reached well before the end of the current contract period. UPM Timber's business management, sawmill directors, employee representatives of each sawmill and representatives of the Industrial Union were involved in the negotiations. In this way, the discussions provided diverse points of view and also made it possible to better take into account the wishes of the personnel as well as the special features of UPM's sawmill business.
"I warmly welcome the new agreement that allows us to develop our business well into the future. I’m also very pleased with how the agreement was reached. Although the discussions were at times difficult, we were able to find solutions together, and here the role of our employee representatives was crucial. I would therefore like to express my warm thanks to them and to all our employees for their patience during this long process. At the same time, I am glad that the agreement also includes one-off elements that allow us to thank our personnel for their good work in this very special year for the sawmill business, above and beyond our normal yearly incentives," says Antti Koulumies, head of UPM Timber.
Employee representatives are also satisfied with their participation in the negotiations.
"This has been a long process for all of us. However, I believe that the negotiating team, which has been in place since last summer, worked very well and due to its good and conciliatory spirit, we have now reached this agreement in time. It‘s been important for us employee representatives to be involved in the process as this has allowed us to convey wishes from our employees to the negotiations and we have also been listened to during the process. Now we can work together to further improve our workplaces and atmosphere," says Jarno Merisalo, employee representative from Kaukas sawmill, who, together with representatives from other sawmills, advocated the personnel in the negotiations.
"We thank UPM Timber's negotiators for the negotiations. The solution will ensure that employees' purchasing power is strengthened and the collective agreement will continue to determine the minimum working conditions for employees," says Jyrki Alapartanen, Head of wood products sector, Industrial Union, who participated in the negotiations.
The Finnish Forest Industries ceased collective bargaining at the end of 2020 and the agreements on working conditions were transferred to the company level at the end of the current agreement period. Instead of centralised collective agreements, the terms are negotiated between each company and the trade union representing employees.
For further information please contact:
Antti Koulumies, Senior Vice President, UPM Timber, tel. +358 45 675 1986
Jyrki Alapartanen, Head of wood products sector, Industrial Union, tel. +358 40 587 7563
UPM, Media Relations
Mon-Fri 9:00-16:00 EET
tel. +358 40 588 3284
media@upm.com
UPM Timber produces redwood and whitewood sawn timber for the joinery, packaging, distribution, and construction industries. Our sawmills are powered entirely by renewable energy. We use certified Nordic raw material and the latest sawmilling techniques to produce high-quality sawn timber that fulfills our customers’ requirements. UPM Timber has four sawmills in Finland with a total annual capacity of 1.4 M cubic metres and its own sales network in Europe and Asia. UPM Timber employs around 400 people and has its headquarter in Tampere. www.upmtimber.com
UPM
We deliver renewable and responsible solutions and innovate for a future beyond fossils across six business areas: UPM Biorefining, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Communication Papers and UPM Plywood. As the industry leader in responsibility we are committed to the UN Business Ambition for 1.5°C and the science-based targets to mitigate climate change. We employ 18,000 people worldwide and our annual sales are approximately EUR 8.6 billion. Our shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd. UPM Biofore – Beyond fossils. www.upm.com
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