Retail workers' and employers' representatives start arbitration talks on Tuesday aimed at resolving their dispute over a new collective agreement in the sector.
The PAM service union gave strike notices on Sunday applying to several warehouses and retail outlets in the second week of February.
Some 25 warehouses and more than 160 shops would be subject to strike action, with around 20,000 workers at the locations affected. The Prisma and Citymarket hypermarket chains are targeted in several locations.
The current collective agreement in the sector expired on 31 January. PAM and the Finnish Commerce Federation have not yet reached a new deal on terms and conditions, so the national labour conciliator is now trying to reconcile the two sides.
PAM has previously said it is aiming for a 200 euro per month raise for workers in the sector.
Industrial workers also in arbitration
In addition to those talks, industrial workers' unions are also in talks on Tuesday. Technology Industries, the employers' organisation in the sector, and the Industrial Union, are negotiating to avoid strikes starting in February.
Their collective agreement expired in November.
There are also labour talks ongoing in the chemicals industry and for white collar workers at industrial employers.
This round of pay talks is particularly difficult, as inflation has been running at close to ten percent and unions have demanded deals close to the five percent pay rises agreed in Germany.
In addition, workers in the municipal sector already agreed a deal linking their pay to the deal reached by industrial workers — anyone working for a local council will see their pay rise by one percentage point more than whatever is agreed by industrial workers.
