Päijät-Häme raises fees as 8,000 workers await negotiations

Päijät-Häme wellbeing services county must rapidly clarify its savings plans after the Ministry of Finance questioned how it will cover a deficit of more than 90 million euros, Yle reports. The county must find 28 million euros in savings next year, while about 8,000 employees are waiting for information about planned co-determination negotiations.

The Ministry of Finance placed Päijät-Häme under preliminary financial guidance in August because its application for more time to cover the deficit did not contain sufficient detail. The county has asked to extend the deadline for covering the deficit until 2029.

Employees learned about negotiations through the media

Although staff were aware of the difficult financial situation, they have criticised the management’s communication about the savings.

Employees learned about the planned negotiations covering the entire workforce through media reports a week ago, when wellbeing services county director Petri Virolainen said they were unavoidable. Previously, staff had been told that negotiations would be targeted at specific parts of the organisation.

“The communication with staff did not go well this time either,” said Linda Sydänmäki, chief shop steward for the public sector negotiating organisation JUKO.

Julia Vehniäinen, chair of the Päijät-Häme branch of the Tehy healthcare union, said employees had been surprised and were now waiting to find out what would happen.

Sydänmäki said negotiations covering the entire workforce would be preferable to targeted negotiations. She said the employer would then also have an obligation to offer training and suitable work in another sector if work ended in one part of the organisation.

Details of savings remain undisclosed

The county’s regional government decided on Monday on the main guidelines for next year’s budget. The sectors must make adjustments totalling 28 million euros to offset expected cost increases. They must also prepare new measures, or clarify earlier plans, worth a total of 8.3 million euros as part of the budget process.

Yle asked sector directors and Virolainen for details on how the savings would be distributed. Virolainen declined to provide information while negotiations with the ministries were under way.

Regional government chair Minna Lampinen of the Social Democratic Party also declined to discuss the allocation of the savings, saying the county had agreed with the ministries not to comment during the negotiations.

Client fees to rise

One concrete measure is already known. The regional government will propose that the county council raise client fees to the maximum level allowed by law for all fees except oral healthcare fees, which will remain at this year’s level next year.

Lampinen said Päijät-Häme had little influence over decisions on client fees. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Ministry of the Interior want assurances that the county can provide statutory services, while the Ministry of Finance is monitoring whether its finances are sufficient.

“We must convince the ministries that we can cover the deficit, keep our county independent and avoid an assessment procedure,” Lampinen said.

According to Lampinen, Päijät-Häme has so far been able to ensure that social and healthcare services remain available in all municipalities and that the 14-day treatment guarantee for non-urgent care remains in place.

If Päijät-Häme enters the state’s assessment procedure, services in small municipalities could be at risk, Lampinen said. She questioned whether the county would still be able to carry out planned investments in Padasjoki and Nastola if decision-making moved to Helsinki.