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A STRIKE in Finland halted public transport and shut down ports nationwide yesterday as workers protested against government cutbacks.
Trains and city buses were not running and Finnair, the national carrier, cancelled 16 domestic flights.
However, ferries, including those to Sweden and Estonia, were running normally.
Some shops were closed during demonstrations later in the day in Helsinki and major Finnish cities.
The strike followed the collapse of talks on a collective agreement on wages and working hours.
Three unions representing 2.2 million people — nearly half of Finland’s population of 5.5 million — are protesting against the government cutbacks, including limits to holiday benefits and overtime pay.
PM Juha Sipila’s three-party ruling coalition, which involves the right-wing Finns Party, announced “painful decisions” after taking office in May.
Unemployment in Finland is expected to rise. In July, it was 8.4 per cent, up from 7 per cent a year earlier.
