Work, Wages and Livelihood
Finland in Figures is an information package about Finland and Finns.
On this page
- Population aged 15 to 74 by activity
- Employment rate, %
- Employed persons aged 15 to 74 by industry
- Employees aged 15 to 74 by type of employment relationship
- Unemployed, aged 15 to 74 years of age
- Unemployment rate
- Index of wage and salary earnings, average annual changes
- Index of wage and salary earnings by employer sector
- Total earnings by employer sector
- Total earnings by level of education and age
- Total earnings by occupation
- Income and taxes in state taxation
- At-risk-of-poverty
- Financial assets of households
- Households' withdrawals of new housing loans
- Loans granted to households
- Household consumption expenditure
- Commuting
Population aged 15 to 74 by activity
2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Population aged 15 to 74, thousand | 4 124 | 4 128 | 4 133 | 4 123 |
Labour force | 2 709 | 2 717 | 2 704 | 2 766 |
Employed | 2 507 | 2 533 | 2 495 | 2 555 |
Unemployed | 202 | 184 | 209 | 212 |
Inactive population | 1 415 | 1 411 | 1 429 | 1 357 |
Labour force rate, % | 65,7 | 65,8 | 65,4 | 67,1 |
Unemployment rate, % | 7,5 | 6,8 | 7,7 | 7,7 |
Males | 7,7 | 7,3 | 8,1 | 8,2 |
Females | 7,2 | 6,2 | 7,4 | 7,1 |
Employed by type of employment relationship, thousand | ||||
Full-time work | 2 082 | 2 091 | 2 078 | 2 073 |
Part-time work | 423 | 440 | 415 | 473 |
Employed by employer sector, thousand | ||||
Private | 1 852 | 1 885 | 1 866 | 1 914 |
Local government | 516 | 513 | 476 | 475 |
Central government | 133 | 131 | 146 | 148 |
Employed by status in employment, thousand | ||||
Employees | 2 169 | 2 185 | 2 151 | 2 193 |
Self-employed persons and unpaid family workers | 338 | 347 | 343 | 361 |
Annual hours actually worked per employee, hours/year | ||||
Total | 1 599 | 1 590 | 1 572 | 1 557 |
Private sector | 1 621 | 1 612 | 1 583 | 1 570 |
Public sector | 1 549 | 1 537 | 1 546 | 1 526 |
The Labour Force Survey was renewed at the beginning of 2021. The table contains time series corrected retrospectively in accordance with the new estimation method.
Employment rate, %

The Labour Force Survey was renewed at the beginning of 2021. The table contains time series corrected retrospectively in accordance with the new estimation method.
Employed persons aged 15 to 74 by industry
Industry TOL 2008 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Thousand persons | ||||
Agriculture, forestry and fishing; mining and quarrying | 102 | 106 | 100 | 107 |
Manufacturing; electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning and water supply; sewerage and waste management | 358 | 349 | 357 | 351 |
Construction | 202 | 196 | 194 | 189 |
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 292 | 287 | 272 | 291 |
Transportation and storage | 146 | 148 | 139 | 135 |
Accommodation and food service activities | 89 | 103 | 83 | 86 |
Information and communication | 109 | 117 | 122 | 126 |
Financial, insurance and real estate activities | 73 | 73 | 76 | 74 |
Professional, scientific and technical activities; administrative and support service activities | 285 | 295 | 304 | 315 |
Public administration and defence; compulsory social security | 110 | 106 | 111 | 117 |
Education | 174 | 176 | 177 | 181 |
Human health and social work activities | 409 | 413 | 402 | 410 |
Arts, entertainment and recreation; other service activities | 152 | 157 | 150 | 157 |
Industry unknown | 6 | 7 | 8 | 16 |
Total | 2 507 | 2 533 | 2 495 | 2 555 |
The Labour Force Survey was renewed at the beginning of 2021. The table contains time series corrected retrospectively in accordance with the new estimation method.
Employees aged 15 to 74 by type of employment relationship
Employees total | Employees total | Permanent full-time work | Permanent part-time work | Fixed-term work | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Males | Females | Males | Females | Males | Females | ||
Thousand persons | Per cent of employees | |||||||
2010 | 2 082 | 100 | 40 | 34 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 10 |
2011 | 2 104 | 100 | 40 | 34 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 10 |
2012 | 2 110 | 100 | 39 | 34 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 9 |
2013 | 2 093 | 100 | 40 | 34 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 10 |
2014 | 2 072 | 100 | 39 | 35 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 10 |
2015 | 2 050 | 100 | 39 | 35 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 9 |
2016 | 2 071 | 100 | 39 | 34 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 10 |
2017 | 2 114 | 100 | 40 | 33 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 10 |
2018 | 2 169 | 100 | 40 | 33 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 10 |
2019 | 2 185 | 100 | 40 | 33 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 9 |
2020 | 2 151 | 100 | 40 | 34 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 9 |
2021 | 2 193 | 100 | 39 | 33 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 10 |
The Labour Force Survey was renewed at the beginning of 2021. The table contains time series corrected retrospectively in accordance with the new estimation method.
Unemployed, aged 15 to 74 years of age

The Labour Force Survey was renewed at the beginning of 2021. The table contains time series corrected retrospectively in accordance with the new estimation method.
Unemployment rate
Total | Males | Females | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Aged 15 to 74 | Aged 15 to 24 | ||
% | % | % | % | |
2010 | 8,6 | 9,4 | 7,7 | 22,0 |
2011 | 8,0 | 8,7 | 7,2 | 20,3 |
2012 | 7,9 | 8,6 | 7,1 | 19,5 |
2013 | 8,3 | 9,1 | 7,5 | 20,6 |
2014 | 8,7 | 9,6 | 7,8 | 20,5 |
2015 | 9,4 | 10,2 | 8,6 | 22,5 |
2016 | 8,9 | 9,4 | 8,4 | 20,5 |
2017 | 8,7 | 9,1 | 8,3 | 20,0 |
2018 | 7,5 | 7,7 | 7,2 | 17,3 |
2019 | 6,8 | 7,3 | 6,2 | 17,7 |
2020 | 7,7 | 8,1 | 7,4 | 21,0 |
2021 | 7,7 | 8,2 | 7,1 | 17,1 |
The Labour Force Survey was renewed at the beginning of 2021. The table contains time series corrected retrospectively in accordance with the new estimation method.
Index of wage and salary earnings, average annual changes

* preliminary data
Source:Statistics Finland, index of wage and salary earnings
Updated: 24.3.2022
Index of wage and salary earnings by employer sector

* preliminary data
Source: Statistics Finland, index of wage and salary earnings
Updated: 24.3.2022
Total earnings by employer sector, 2020
Employer sector | Median of total earnings, €/month | Full-time employees | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Total | Men | Women | ||
Private sector | 3 303 | 3 566 | 2 972 | 1 009 756 |
Local government | 2 960 | 3 358 | 2 895 | 359 914 |
Central government | 3 850 | 4 164 | 3 441 | 70 269 |
Total | 3 228 | 3 575 | 2 953 | 1 439 939 |
Total earnings by level of education and age, 2020

Total earnings by occupation, 2020
Category of occupation | Median of total earnings, €/month | Full-time employees | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Total | Men | Women | ||
Managers | 6 877 | 7 401 | 5 850 | 54 240 |
Managing directors and chief executives | 10 910 | 11 435 | 8 629 | 2 658 |
Professionals | 4 207 | 4 622 | 3 888 | 379 988 |
Medical doctors | 7 451 | 7 749 | 7 279 | 12 720 |
Primary school and early childhood teachers | 3 111 | 3 720 | 3 035 | 41 949 |
Technicians and associate professionals | 3 311 | 3 749 | 3 043 | 352 390 |
Nursing and midwifery associate professionals | 3 115 | 3 403 | 3 088 | 55 320 |
Sales and purchasing agents and brokers | 3 992 | 4 299 | 3 609 | 45 274 |
Clerical support workers | 2 759 | 2 892 | 2 726 | 85 412 |
Numerical clerks | 2 836 | 2 938 | 2 824 | 16 066 |
Service and sales workers | 2 534 | 2 724 | 2 483 | 225 132 |
Shop salespersons | 2 575 | 2 820 | 2 478 | 49 164 |
Child care workers and teachers' aides | 2 287 | 2 207 | 2 293 | 33 710 |
Personal care workers in health services | 2 711 | 2 768 | 2 705 | 71 346 |
Craft and related trades workers | 3 083 | 3 125 | 2 694 | 111 144 |
Plant and machine operators, and assemblers | 3 064 | 3 158 | 2 692 | 117 657 |
Heavy truck and bus drivers | 2 994 | 3 011 | 2 759 | 26 850 |
Cleaners and helpers | 2 080 | 2 070 | 2 081 | 40 254 |
Income and taxes in state taxation, 2020
Individual taxpayers and death estates
Income bracket, € | Income recipients, thousand | Income subject to taxation, € million | Income taxes, € million |
---|---|---|---|
– 9 999 | 1 413 | 13 027 | 962 |
10 000–19 999 | 872 | 17 003 | 2 353 |
20 000–29 999 | 891 | 26 540 | 4 224 |
30 000–39 999 | 676 | 26 920 | 5 336 |
40 000–49 999 | 376 | 18 921 | 4 463 |
50 000–59 999 | 200 | 12 227 | 3 225 |
60 000–69 999 | 110 | 7 936 | 2 254 |
70 000–79 999 | 65 | 5 377 | 1 607 |
80 000–89 999 | 39 | 3 683 | 1 155 |
90 000–99 999 | 26 | 2 678 | 879 |
100 000–149 999 | 50 | 6 461 | 2 279 |
150 000– | 27 | 9 253 | 3 468 |
Yhteensä | 4 746 | 150 026 | 32 205 |
At-risk-of-poverty
1) Persons at-risk-of-poverty are those whose household’s disposable monetary income per consumption unit is below 60 per cent of the median income of the whole population.
Source: Statistics Finland, income distribution statistics
Updated: 15.12.2021
Financial assets of households

Households' withdrawals of new housing loans
New housing loans withdrawn from Finnish financial institutions

Loans granted to households on 31 December
Loans granted by Finnish financial institutions
Year | Housing loans | Consumer credit and other loans | Total |
---|---|---|---|
€ billion | |||
2015 | 92,0 | 30,0 | 122,0 |
2016 | 94,1 | 30,9 | 124,9 |
2017 | 96,1 | 32,0 | 128,1 |
2018 | 97,8 | 33,0 | 130,7 |
2019 | 100,4 | 34,1 | 134,4 |
2020 | 103,6 | 34,9 | 138,6 |
2021 | 107,8 | 36,0 | 143,7 |
Household consumption expenditure
1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2020* | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
% | |||||
Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels | 18,6 | 18,3 | 24,5 | 25,8 | 30,6 |
Food and non-alcoholic beverages | 21,3 | 16,3 | 12,6 | 12,1 | 12,5 |
Transport | 14,4 | 14,5 | 13,2 | 12,3 | 10,4 |
Recreation and culture | 10,2 | 11,2 | 11,3 | 11,9 | 9,3 |
Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics | 6,3 | 6,6 | 5,8 | 5,1 | 5,3 |
Restaurants and hotels | 6,4 | 7,7 | 6,4 | 6,3 | 5,2 |
Furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance | 6,1 | 5,4 | 4,8 | 5,3 | 5,1 |
Health | 2,1 | 2,9 | 3,8 | 4,4 | 4,9 |
Clothing and footwear | 6,1 | 5,6 | 4,6 | 4,8 | 3,4 |
Communication | 1,1 | 1,4 | 3,1 | 2,5 | 2,5 |
Education | 0,2 | 0,3 | 0,5 | 0,4 | 0,4 |
Miscellaneous goods and services | 7,2 | 9,8 | 9,4 | 9,1 | 10,3 |
Total | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
* preliminary data
Commuting
Year | Persons working outside their municipality of residence | Persons working in their municipality of residence | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Total | % | Total | % | |
1990 | 509 861 | 21,9 | 1 822 421 | 78,1 |
2000 | 610 938 | 27,4 | 1 617 619 | 72,6 |
2010 | 751 778 | 32,3 | 1 573 901 | 67,7 |
2011 | 771 068 | 32,7 | 1 583 354 | 67,3 |
2012 | 769 825 | 32,9 | 1 570 079 | 67,1 |
2013 | 760 460 | 33,0 | 1 541 291 | 67,0 |
2014 | 756 159 | 33,3 | 1 517 917 | 66,7 |
2015 | 758 240 | 33,6 | 1 498 219 | 66,4 |
2016 | 775 239 | 34,1 | 1 500 440 | 65,9 |
2017 | 805 269 | 34,6 | 1 522 461 | 65,4 |
2018 | 825 287 | 34,8 | 1 548 381 | 65,2 |
2019 | 825 109 | 34,8 | 1 548 417 | 65,2 |
Regional division as on 1 January 2020
Main topic: Work, Wages and Livelihood
More statistical figures in the StatFin database
Finland in Figures only includes the key figures on Finland and Finns. You can find more figures on various sectors of society in the easy-to-use StatFin database.
The database also provides regional data, such as the population of municipalities.
Last updated 17 Jun 2022