Finland looks to Philippines for talent attraction

MANILA, Philippines — Finland is actively encouraging Filipino workers to consider employment opportunities in the European country, citing the Philippines as one of its focus countries for talent attraction.

Laura Lindeman, senior director and head of Work in Finland, told reporters the Philippines, along with Vietnam, India and Brazil, has been identified by the Finnish government as one of the focus countries for cooperation in talent attraction and recruitment.

Work in Finland is a unit of Business Finland, an organization for financing innovation and promoting trade, travel and investment. It is under Finland’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.

As part of efforts to attract Filipino workers, Lindeman said Work in Finland joined the delegation of stakeholders led by Finland’s Minister of Employment Arto Satonen that visited the Philippines from Jan.16 to 18.

“Finland really sees the Philippines as a very interesting market,” Lindeman said, noting that the Philippines has a long history of sending people outside the country for work.

She said the Philippines also has good systems in place to facilitate recruitment.

“Finnish recruitment companies have already recruited from the Philippines for more than 10 years. So now we are trying to help on a national level so that they can find reliable partners here because of course, it’s a huge market if you want to open up here,” she said.

She said Filipinos are also well-known, liked and appreciated in the Finnish labor market.

In addition, she said Finland recognizes the skills potential of the Filipino workforce and those in the three other focus countries.

“There are good education institutions in these countries that provide the kind of skills and talent that Finland needs. And then, of course, I think in all of these countries, there is some kind of cultural match,” she said.

She said Finland sees potential for Filipino workers and specialists in the technology, health and industrial sectors.

Data from Work in Finland showed there are 878 job opportunities open for English-speaking professionals.

As of 2023, there were 12,770 Filipino workers employed across various sectors in Finland, mostly in the health, technology, service and industrial sectors.

“Finland is an equal society with exceptional work-life balance. Our high-quality companies offer vast opportunities for professional development and education,” Lindeman said.

To learn more about working and living conditions in Finland, Filipino talents can visit www.workinfinland.com.