Summer is the time when many young people start paid work for the first time. Unemployment insurance is often not the first thing on your mind, but it is a good idea to join an unemployment fund as soon as you turn 18 so that you can, for example, accumulate entitlement to an earnings-related daily allowance while you are working in the summer. Only as a member of an unemployment fund can you receive earnings-related unemployment allowance and other benefits paid by the fund.
You become entitled to earnings-related unemployment benefit when you have been a member of an unemployment fund long enough (about six months) and have done the required amount of paid work (about six months). You must be in work when you join an unemployment fund. So if you are unemployed, you cannot become a member. However, the current government is planning to extend the required period of employment entitling you to unemployment allowance. This makes it even more important to join an unemployment fund as soon as possible. For example, if you do not find a job immediately after graduating, but you have already accumulated the employment condition through previous summer jobs, you can apply for earnings-related unemployment benefit.
Earnings-related unemployment benefit is a significant benefit
For example, if you earned EUR 2,000 a month before you became unemployed, the amount of the income-related unemployment allowance would be about EUR 1,300 a month, while the basic unemployment allowance from Kela alone would be about EUR 500 less, i.e. EUR 800 a month. Membership of A-Kassa Open Unemployment Fund costs only EUR 96 per year, which is one of the lowest in Finland.
In addition to the unemployment fund, many members of A-kassa Open Unemployment Fund also belong to a trade union. The unemployment fund provides security in the event of unemployment, while the trade union provides security during employment and, for example, negotiates collective agreements. The membership fee for several trade unions also includes membership of an unemployment fund.
A-kassa Open Unemployment Fund is the third largest multi-sectoral unemployment fund in Finland.
