UPM and the Finnish Paperworkers’ Union (Paperiliitto) again failed to reach an agreement on a new collective agreement. On April 14, the union rejected four settlement proposals submitted by the mediator for UPM Pulp, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Raflatac and UPM Biofuels.

Paperiliitto says that the unanimous decision to reject the four settlement proposals was made because of the previously ended negotiations with UPM Communication Papers. Without the paper segment, the four compromise proposals would cover only half of UPM’s unionized employees in Finland, the union explains.

As a result, the exceptionally long strike at UPM’s pulp and paper mills in Finland continues. The union’s executive committee has announced that it will be extended May 14, unless an agreement can be reached before then.

UPM says that Paperiliitto had previously agreed that each UPM company could reach a settlement on its own. This was one of the main objectives of the UPM group, which wanted to get out of the unity agreement for all Finnish sites.

“The mediation found settlement proposals for four businesses that took the needs and wishes of both parties into account. We were confident that both parties undertook to accept these settlement proposals and industrial peace would resume,” comments Jyrki Hollmén, vice president, Labor Markets at UPM explains.

“UPM has backed itself into a corner because of its drastic targets and does not seem to be moving,” Petri Vanhala, chairman of Paperiliitto, says of the deadlocked situation.

About 2,000 UPM employees are currently on strike. About 200 union members work in areas such as heat generation and water management, which must remain in operation according to a court order dated January 21, 2022.

UPM reiterates that it serves its customers as much as possible from mills outside Finland. First quarter results will be announced on April 26.