Minister of Labour Tarja Cronberg (Greens) is putting forward the name of district conciliator Esa Lonka, 60, as the new National Conciliator.
Cronberg hopes that the labour market organisations will learn from the selection process that has become rather muddled this time around.
The minister told of her decision after having discussed the matter with the organisations on Wednesday. The National Conciliator will be appointed by the government next week.
Lonka was the joint nominee of the labour market organisations. In Cronberg’s view Lonka enjoys the confidence of the organisations and can therefore start his work with a clean slate.
Lonka finally ended up as the nominee, because none of the trade union movement candidates enjoyed the support of all the wage-earner organisations. Traditionally the employee and employer sides have alternated in putting forward the National Conciliator, and this time it was the employee side’s turn.
According to the Labour Minister, after four years the “situation will surely be completely different”. The position four years hence has not been promised to the wage earners, even though a civil servant has now been selected "on their turn".
“Officially nothing has been agreed with regard to whose turn it is and what the conduct should be four years from now.”
Cronberg nevertheless considers it sensible that the labour market organisations are heard the next time around as well, for the National Conciliator has to enjoy their confidence.
The selection process has been complicated. The former chairman of the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions SAK Lauri Ihalainen withheld his announcement for candidacy for a long time, but decided eventually to abandon the idea.
Next the Unemployment Insurance Fund managing director Heikki Pohja and the SAK head of industrial policy department Janne Metsämäki withdrew their applications.
The National Conciliator in office Juhani Salonius will retire after the summer.
