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Demand for skilled labour in maritime industry on rise: Govt report

Demand for skilled labour in maritime industry on rise: Govt report

The demand for skilled labour in the maritime industry is growing, according to a report published by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment on Wednesday. The report also said that competence requirements in the sector, especially for highly skilled tasks, are changing, said the Ministry in a press release. “The ship orders received by the shipyards in Turku, Rauma and Helsinki will employ thousands of people and create new jobs across Finland. We must ensure with the help of employment services and continuing education that Finland has a sufficient number of skilled workers to fill the vacancies in the maritime industry,” said Minister of Employment Matias Marttinen on the occasion of publishing the report. “In this employment situation, we need to increase the number of Finnish workers employed by the maritime industry and its subcontractors. Among the unemployed in Finland there are both professionals and highly educated experts who should now be encouraged to enter the marine sector to meet the need for skilled labour,” Marttinen added. According to the report, attracting young people into the maritime industry is essential for the future success of the sector. At a time of high youth unemployment, young people could try out the sector with a new recruitment subsidy, for example. Other employment policy instruments, such as labour market training and wage-subsidised apprenticeships, should also be utilised more. Further and supplementary training and retraining can impact the availability of skilled labour quickly. According to the report, however, a long-term strategic plan is also necessary to meet the demand for highly educated workforce, in particular, and the skills required for product development and research in the marine industry. The report proposed nine concrete measures focusing on improving the ability of the sector to attract and retain workforce, providing more diverse opportunities for training, enhancing the use of employment services, and introducing measures to increase the recruitment of young people and career-changers in the sector. In addition, the report includes proposals to support the ethical and sustainable use of foreign labour.

610 Finns die abroad last year

610 Finns die abroad last year

The Unit for Consular Assistance at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs was involved in managing 610 cases of death abroad in 2025, said the ministry in a press release onWednesday. There were 71 victims of crime abroad last year, 204 requests for assistance due to an illness and 147 arrests or detainments. The number of arrests or detainments in the Nordic countries was not included in the figure as those cases are handled through direct contact between the countries authorities. The Ministry and the Finnish missions abroad provided consular services to about 245,000 people in 2025. In addition, the Ministrys 24/7 service was contacted around 6,700 times over the course of the year. The number of requests for assistance was highest in the most popular travel destinations among Finns such as Spain, Germany, Thailand, Estonia and Sweden. In 2025, Finnish missions around the world issued 15,947 new passports and 5,559 identity cards. The crisis that kept consular services busiest last year was the escalated conflict in the Middle East. The year was also marked by political unrest and demonstrations that turned violent in several countries, such as Tanzania and Nepal.