In Uusimaa, on average, one in three people working in the building construction industry is a foreigner, and in the rest of the country, almost one in ten. The share has not changed significantly in this decade. There are fewer foreigners in infrastructure construction. The information appears from the latest labor survey by Rakennusteollisuus RT.
"Construction and therefore foreign labor are largely concentrated in southern Finland. In Uusimaa, the share of foreign workers on house construction sites has varied between 25 and 33 percent since 2010. In Finland as a whole, it has remained around a fifth. This seems to have become some sort of standard level", the labor market director of Rakennusteollisuus RT Kim Kaskiaro says.
The establishment is also indicated by the fact that, according to the survey, expectations for the development of the share of the foreign workforce are more moderate than ever. In the entire country, 36 percent of the respondents, less than in any previous survey, estimate that the share will increase. The majority, or 60 percent, believe it will remain unchanged.
"Estonians still make up the majority of the foreign workforce in the construction industry. Many Estonian employees have settled more permanently in Finland, and some have even founded Finnish companies. More and more Ukrainians also come through Estonia," Kim Kaskiaro mentions.
Based on the statistics, Poland, Latvia and Lithuania are also among the countries that send the most builders to Finland.
"Eastern Europe especially has know-how in heavy construction, such as reinforcement, formwork and facade work. Most likely, there haven't been enough Finnish workers for these tasks."
An increase of 30 employees in the construction industry
Since 2015, construction has been in a strong boom, which is now reversing. Employment in the construction industry has grown by a total of almost 30 people, and last year there were an average of 000 employed in the industry.
"The vast majority of jobs have gone to Finns. In March, the number of people receiving unemployment benefits in the construction industry unemployment fund was almost half less than exactly four years earlier."
"The unemployment rate in construction was only four percent at the end of last year. Full employment is practically impossible to achieve because, for example, employees' place of residence or skills do not always coincide with open jobs," says Kaskiaro.
"With these prospects, employment in construction is about to decline next year. Strong cyclical fluctuations are one of the reasons why the share of own labor force has trendily decreased in construction companies for over ten years now. With subcontracting and rental labor, it is possible to respond more flexibly to fluctuating demand and skills needs."
Background information on the labor force survey
Construction Industry RT's labor force survey was conducted for the eighth time in the building industry and the third time in infrastructure construction. In the survey, companies are asked about the total number of sites and employees, as well as the number of their own employees, temporary employees and subcontractors, and the share of foreign employees.
Information is asked as a cross-section from one day. In the past, the date has been in November, while this time the date was March 27, 2019. In March, the number of workers at the construction sites is lower than in November due to seasonal changes.
174 companies responded to the survey of the building industry and 43 companies responded to the survey of the infrastructure industry. The answers do not cover all the sites of RT's member companies, nor any sites outside the membership. However, the results of the survey give direction on the use of foreign labor in the construction industry as a whole, because the companies participating in the survey also provide the employee information of their subcontractors operating on their sites.
Nowadays, construction companies know more precisely who works on the construction sites and how working conditions and tax payment are managed. Since 2013, all those working on construction sites must have a tax number and must be registered in the tax number register. In addition, the law on the notification procedure that entered into force in 2014 requires that subcontractors report their site employee information to the main contractor on a monthly basis. The main contractor, on the other hand, is obliged to keep a list of all employees on the site and report the information to the taxman every month.
The labor force survey materials and also region-specific information can be found at www.rakennusteollisuus.fi/tyovoimakysely.
More information
- Kim Kaskiaro, director of the labor market and branch director of house construction, tel. 050 548 1691
- Paavo Syrjö, branch director of infrastructure construction, tel. 040 560 1803
- Merja Vuoripuro, director of communications, tel. 040 587 2642