Lay-offs increasing sharply due to the coronavirus pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic brought Finland’s economy to a rapid halt, more abruptly and more sharply than previous crises, which was particularly visible in labour markets through a rapid increase in layoffs and unemployment. The lay-off system allowed firms to temporarily adjust their labour input, and by the end of March more than 300,000 employees were under lay-off threat, especially in service sectors and partly also in manufacturing.

The crisis affected firms and industries broadly, but at the same time labour demand increased in some sectors. The final employment impact depends on the duration of the pandemic and on the public sector’s ability to prevent firm failures and a persistent rise in unemployment. (AI translation)

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