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Temporary labour

The term ‘temporary labour’ refers to situations where an organisation (known as the ‘user enterprise’) contracts employees from a temporary work agency. The rights and responsibilities governed by temporary employment contracts are divided so that the right to manage and supervise work is transferred to the user enterprise. The user enterprise also takes over any statutory responsibilities of employers that are directly linked to the practical aspects of organising work.

According to earlier equality legislation, user enterprises could not be held liable for compensation under the Finnish Equality Act as regards discriminatory management practices, as user enterprises are not officially considered employers of temporary workers, and only employers could be held liable for compensation. The revised legislation extends the liability of employers to user enterprises in situations where a user enterprise exercises managerial prerogative over temporary workers.

User enterprises are therefore also responsible for abiding by the provisions of the Finnish Equality Act as regards the management, supervision and working conditions of temporary workers. For example, user enterprises are responsible for preventing harassment and for delegating tasks in a manner that does not discriminate against individuals on the basis of sex or gender.

The obligation to afford equal treatment is particularly pertinent to situations where an organisation employs several temporary workers, whereby the employer must treat all temporary workers as equals. In addition, employers are required to follow the principle of non-discrimination between in-house staff and any temporary workers whenever employers exercise their managerial prerogative.

The temporary work agency is responsible for all other obligations of employers. User enterprises cannot be held liable for any decisions that the temporary work agency makes in its capacity as an employer. Temporary work agencies continue to be held solely responsible for situations where a pregnant temporary worker is dismissed on the grounds of pregnancy, for example.