Photo by Tapio Haaja on Unsplash

Among social democrats, mainly in the UK and USA, there is a belief that social democracy will be an end solution to the fundamental flaws of Capitalism for the working class and this is the solution workers should aim for as an end goal, often called the Nordic model. Bernie Sanders was quoted as saying

In Finland, where 80 percent of workers belong to unions, all employees enjoy at least 30 days paid vacation, and the gap between the rich and poor is far more equitable than in the United States.

Let’s take a deeper look at Finland, just because it is often quoted as a model to strive for and just because I happen to be able to read and write the language. I will do the translations for the quotes myself. If you think I have a bias in the translation, feel free to write it in the comment section.

The Bernie quote above is easy to prove wrong as not all employees enjoy 30 days paid holiday. In fact, many have not had any for years and are exploited just like in any Capitalist country. If we take the Finnish postal system as an example, just because between the 2nd and 4th of September 2019 there was a postal strike over pay and conditions and a lot was written about it in the Finnish press and it shows the real reasons for Finland’s equality.

Iltalehti writes Jarmo työskenteli Postille kaikkiaan 13 vuotta, joista 2,5 vuotta määräaikaisena. Noiden reilun kahden vuoden aikana Jarmo allekirjoitti kaikkiaan 109 työsopimusta, joista lyhimmät olivat voimassa vain yhden päivän. My translation Jarmo worked for the Post Office in all for 13 years, of which 2.5 was as a temporary worker. During those two years, Jarmo signed in total 109 work agreements, of which the shortest was valid for only one day.

It then goes on to say:

Määräaikaiselle työntekijälle ei myöskään kertynyt lomia, joten Jarmo teki reilut kaksi vuotta töitä ilman lomaa. Temporary workers don’t accumulate any holiday entitlements and so Jarmo did two years of work without any holiday.

So, sorry Bernie, your assertion that all employees in Finland get 30 days holiday is false. The Finnish workers must fight hard to keep their rights, if anything it is their collective action which does that. Even with that, many of the poor are still exploited. That is what protects workers in all Capitalist countries. That is the key to the Nordic model, there is no magic to it, it could happen in any country if the workers would be allowed to organise.

As I said, there is currently a postal strike ongoing in Finland as I write this. As in any Capitalist society you will see a clash of interests between the workers and the employers. This goes back to Marx and is a classic “feature” of Capitalism.

Iltalehti writes

Postikeskuksissa työskentelee runsaasti työntekijöitä vuokratyöyritysten kautta. Nieminen kertoo, että useampi vuokratyöyritys on painostanut vuokratyöläisiä lakkoon osallistumisesta. – Liittoon kuuluu paljon vuokratyöntekijöitä ja heille on selvää, että he ovat myös lakossa. Ainakin yksi vuokratyöyritys on ilmoittanut työntekijöilleen ottavansa kaikki työtunnit pois, jos he osallistuvat lakkoon, Nieminen kertoo. My translation. Plenty of workers work in the post distribution center through temp agencies. Nieminen [Union guy] says that many temp agencies have pressurised their workers from participating in the strike. A lot of the temp workers belong to a union and to them it is clear that they are also on strike. At least one temp agency has informed its workers that it will take away all their hours if they participate in the strike, said Nieminen.

While the capitalist system exists, you will always see this constant battle between the employees and the employers. Employers trying to intimidate the employees is not solved via social democracy. No amount of social democracy can solve that clash. In addition, as with any Capitalist society, you see those at the top nicely compensated well beyond their own worth.

Heikki Malinen, yhteensä 987 764 euroa. Yhtiön hallituksen jäsenten palkat ja palkkiot noin 400 000 euroa. The Post CEO Heikki Malinen earns altogether 987,764 euros, the members of the directors board’s pay and perks are about 400,000 euros.

That pay is higher than the UK post office’s CEO pay at 718,300 pounds ( about 795,000 euros). Only worker run corporations can solve these Capitalist deficits, aka Socialism.

The average employee earns 2,200 euros per month compared to the CEO’s 82,000 euros per month.

Postin pakettilajittelussa työskentelevät ansaitsevat keskimäärin noin 2 200 euroa kuukaudessa. Malinen ansaitsi viime vuonna yli 82 000 euroa kuukaudessa. On average a worker in the Post’s sorting office earns 2,200 euros a month. Malinen earned last year over 82,000 euros per month.

Malinen’s pay has increased from 471,000 since 2013 while under the new proposed agreement, the workers are expected to take a 30–50% pay cut.

I could talk more about Finland and the Nordic model, it is not the utopia it is made out to be and the main reason it works is because of its strong labour movement. Even with that, we see year after year more and more cuts in health and education. The key is unionisation, that is what made Finland more equal and that is constantly under attack. An equal society requires active and constant participation of the workers. The vanguards of the workers ( the political elite ) will not and cannot do that. Worker’s of the world don’t need social democracy they need unions and worker’s control.

Check out my videos discussing similar ideas here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/MrTweedyDocumentaries