Skip to content
Home » PAM announces strike in ski centre industry – targets Finland’s largest ski centres
Press releases

16.02.2025 16:34

PAM announces strike in ski centre industry – targets Finland’s largest ski centres

The collective agreement negotiations in ski centre industry have been stuck since the end of January. PAM announced new industrial action to get negotiations moving. A strike in ski centres is set to start on 3 March 2025 at 00.01 and end on 4 March 2025 at 23.59.

Service Union United PAM and the employers’ association MaRa started negotiating a new collective agreement for the ski centre industry in mid-January. The negotiations progressed slowly and did not yield results, which is why PAM decided to end the talks on 31 January.

PAM’s Executive Committee decided Sunday, 16 February on a strike on work covered by the collective agreement for the ski centres at the following companies:

  • Hiihtokeskus Iso Ylläs Oy (Ylläs, Kolari) 
  • Huippupaikat Oy (Vuokatti, Sotkamo; Tahko, Tahkovuori ja Kasurila, Siilinjärvi) 
  • Oy Levi Ski Resort Ltd (Kittilä) 
  • Pyhätunturi Oy (Pyhä, Pelkosenniemi) 
  • Rukakeskus Oy (Kuusamo) 
  • Ylläs-Ski Oy (Äkäslompolo)   

The strike starts on 3 March 2025 at 00.01 and end on 4 March 2025 at 23.59, unless an agreement is reached between the negotiating parties.

The strike does not apply to emergency work or tasks where it would put essential public services or human lives at risk.

— A strike is always the last resort to get negotiations going. But in this situation, we had no other choice. We do not want to cause unnecessary trouble for ski centre customers, but to ensure that employees get the fair working conditions and pay raises they deserve, says PAM Director Risto Kalliorinne.

PAM had already announced a ban on overtime and shift changes in the ski centre industry, which has been in effect since 3 February 2025.

Aiming for an agreement that improves purchasing power

PAM’s Collective Bargaining Specialist Sirpa Moilanen considers the difficult situation in negotiations unfortunate. PAM’s goal is to reach an agreement that improves the incomes, workplace safety, and well-being of ski centre employees.

— Skilled employees create unforgettable experiences for tourists, ensure customer safety, and contribute to the success of ski centres. At the same time, many workers are worried about their own financial situation due to rising prices. They truly need a pay rise that increases their purchasing power, says Moilanen.

In addition to wages, ski centre employees are concerned about getting enough working hours. Many employees in the sector work part-time or seasonally, meaning the number of hours they get directly impacts whether they can afford rent, bills, and daily expenses.

The last negotiations on the ski centre industry collective agreement took place in November 2024. At that time, PAM and MaRa agreed to extend the agreement period by three months until 31 January 2025.

More information at pam.fi/strikes

Collective bargaining 2024-2025

In collective bargaining, PAM and the employers’ associations negotiate collective agreements with pay rises and other terms of employment for all workers in private service sectors.

Follow the negotiations at
pam.fi/collective-bargaining

Keywords:

collective bargaining industrial action ski centres

What did you think of this content?

Read next

Search