Nokia employer policies in Brazil respectable, but concerns voiced about shares of various stakeholders

New study on working conditions

(Helsinki 18.10.2002 Juhani Artto) The world's largest mobile telephone manufacturer Nokia, which is based in Finland, has a factory in the Manaus Duty Free Zone in Brazil with a staff of more than 1,300.

In September the Union Solidarity Center of Finland SASK published a study on how Nokia treats its labour force in Brazil. On learning of the favourable outcome of the study, the Finnish public breathed a sigh of relief at the prospect of continued satisfaction with this Flagship of Finnish industry. Even though some 90 per cent of the company is nowadays owned by foreigners, Finns still regard Nokia as a Finnish enterprise. And there are good reasons for doing so: Nokia has its roots and Head Office in Finland, and in 2001 roughly half of its 54,000 employees worked in Finland.

The study, conducted by the union-related Brazilian research centre Social Observatory, was first of its kind on a multinational based in Finland. This has generated a particularly keen interest in its findings here. As few studies of this kind have been made elsewhere, this carefully compiled research document also deserves attention beyond the borders of Finland and Brazil.

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