Finland’s forestry sector faces a severe labour shortage and must recruit more foreign workers to secure its future, according to a new report published on Wednesday by forestry consultancy Tapio.

The report states that the sector needs to recruit up to 1,000 new workers annually to compensate for the number of retirements as well as other factors reducing the amount of skilled workers.

The consultancy firm further warns that the shortage may affect not only forest management work, but also the timber harvesting and transport sectors of the industry.

Finland forestry companies often hire seasonal workers from abroad — in particular from non-EU countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines — to plug the gap in skilled labour.

Although this has provided a temporary solution, Tapio's report suggests that state funding should be provided for these seasonal workers to receive short-term vocational training — with a particular emphasis on occupational safety and adapting to Finnish working life.

In addition, the firm notes that the requirement for fluent Finnish language skills has limited the chances that foreigners, already living in Finland, have of landing a job in the sector. Tapio therefore calls for more forestry-focused training courses to be provided in English.

The challenges facing Finland's forestry industry are further exacerbated by the finding that the capacity of Finnish forests to absorb planet-warming emissions was previously overestimated. This has led to widespread calls for the industry to operate in more climate-friendly ways, including in a recent report by the Climate Panel.

Tapio's report was carried out in conjunction with Metsäteho, an R&D company owned by forestry sector organisations and companies, with funding from the Metsämiesten Säätiö foundation.

Source: helsinkitimes.fi