Nursing union SuPer has begun preparations for a campaign of mass resignations by healthcare workers, in the event that a proposal to settle the ongoing industrial dispute is not satisfactory.
The union's board agreed on the course of action at a meeting on Thursday afternoon, but details such as timing are to be revealed at a later date.
SuPer chair Silja Paavola said the union's potential action still depends on the type of proposal put forward by the Labour Conciliation Board to resolve the dispute.
"We're trying to find a solution. Mass redundancies are a really drastic measure. Is it really necessary to take such action so that the distress call by nurses about the severe shortage of workers is understood," Paavola asked.
Elina Pylkkänen, Permanent State Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, told Yle that the settlement proposal is expected to be completed this week.
"The discussion was in good spirit, so it's not worth panicking about this [mass resignation] matter," Paavola said.
She added that the chronic shortage of nurses is at the heart of the dispute, which could be remedied by improving pay and conditions for healthcare workers, terms that have already been agreed in the sector's collective bargaining agreements.
"Reasonable progress has been made," Paavola added.
Tehy supports mass resignations plan
The other union involved in the dispute, Tehy, gave its backing to SuPer's mass resignations plan on Tuesday, but has not yet revealed if it will be following a similar course of action.
Tehy chair Millariikka Rytkönen said that the organisation is not in a hurry, but that any possible action will only be decided after the settlement proposal has been received and reviewed.
The two unions cancelled a planned strike that was scheduled to begin before Easter, in response to the threat of a law that could have effectively forced striking nurses back to work.
The unions argued that the planned law would have taken away nurses' right to strike.