Major Finnish forestry firms lay off domestic loggers while increasing foreign labour

Finland’s largest private forest owners are eliminating their in-house logging teams and shifting to subcontracted labour, with a growing reliance on foreign seasonal workers, reports national broadcaster Yle.

Tornator, the country’s biggest private forest landowner, has announced it will lay off all 25 of its directly employed loggers. The company, majority-owned by Stora Enso, cited operational simplification as the reason, stating that outsourcing will improve efficiency. Currently, Tornator’s own loggers handle just 5% of manual forestry tasks such as tree planting and clearing.

Metsä Group, another major forestry firm, made a similar move last autumn during large-scale redundancies, while UPM phased out its in-house loggers two decades ago.

The Industrial Union (Teollisuusliitto) has criticised the shift, warning that subcontracting often leads to undercutting wages and poor working conditions. Union specialist Jari Sirviö noted that cost competition frequently results in violations of labour laws, with contractors winning bids by reducing worker protections.

Tornator’s lands employ around 1,600 loggers annually, roughly half of whom now come from abroad. Development director Heikki Penttinen acknowledged the decline in Finnish-trained loggers, stating that few graduates remain in the profession. The company vets subcontractors and conducts unannounced site inspections to monitor working conditions.

Finnish authorities have uncovered serious issues in the treatment of foreign seasonal workers, particularly in eastern Finland. A recent investigation by the Finnish Border Guard revealed that two forestry firms in Sotkamo allegedly brought in 179 workers using fraudulent visas or residence permits between 2024 and 2025. The case is part of a broader human trafficking probe into the sector.

Tommi Nevalainen, a logger with nearly 20 years at Tornator, represented staff in redundancy negotiations. He said some laid-off workers qualify for early retirement, but most face job searches. Nevalainen himself is considering a career change through vocational rehabilitation. Tornator has pledged to support re-employment by offering additional contracts to subcontractors who hire its former loggers.

Beyond private firms, state-owned Metsähallitus and local forest management associations still employ loggers directly. Nevalainen called for better pay and conditions to retain domestic workers in the industry.