Sick leave cost Finland’s wellbeing services counties 575 million euros

Employees of Finland’s wellbeing services counties took an average of 16.1 sick days each in 2025, with direct costs to the counties totalling 575 million euros, Yle reports. The actual cost was higher because the estimate excludes indirect expenses.

Figures compiled by pension insurer Keva show that average sick days ranged from about 14 to 20 per employee across the counties. HUS’s joint authority area and the Vantaa and Kerava wellbeing services county had the fewest absences, while Kymenlaakso had the most.

Pirkanmaa’s own calculations put its average at 21 sick days per employee. The difference from Keva’s figure is because Pirkanmaa also counted absences among employees who were no longer employed by the county at the end of the year. Sick leave has remained high in Pirkanmaa throughout the wellbeing services counties’ existence.

Keva’s 575-million-euro estimate covers wages paid during absences and related employment costs. It does not include indirect costs such as lost productivity, temporary cover, overtime or the administration of absences. Sick leave accounted for about 74 percent of the counties’ costs related to incapacity for work in 2025, according to Keva.

Absence levels also varied by occupation. Childcare workers had the most sick days on average, while doctors had the fewest. Keva does not track the reasons for absences, but its research indicates that longer absences among young adults are increasingly linked to anxiety. Pirkanmaa has also reported a rise in mental health-related absences, particularly among younger employees.