Staff training

Developing the competence of your employees through personnel training is an important part of the overall development of your company. For example, Targeted training is vocational training tailored to the needs of your company.

When you train your employees systematically and continuously, their competence and vocational skills are always up-to-date. Good-quality and diverse training can also improve your employees’ job satisfaction, fitness for work and their ability to cope.

Personnel training may also increase your employees’ commitment to the company. This in turn may reduce staff turnover, which means that valuable skills stay in your company.

Well-trained employees may improve your company's competitiveness and opportunities to do well. Working in your company may become smoother and its profitability may improve. In addition, staff training may help your company establish uniform operating practices. In that case, the customer experience and customer satisfaction may also improve.

Staff training is often organised as short-term refresher courses that you can purchase for example from educational institutions and training companies of different sectors. In addition to the vocational skills of your employees, also improve their team work, language and IT skills.

You may organise training for the entire staff at the same time or just for individual employees. Your company is responsible for the costs of the training. Pay your employees salary for the duration of the training or compensate for their loss of free time either as money or time off.

When you consider the amount and content of training required by your employees, take into account the educational level and age structure of your staff and the changes that will take place in your company in the future. Define the personal training needs separately with each employee in a performance appraisal, for example.

Your employees may participate in training also on their own initiative but only with your consent. In that case you will pay the costs of the training either partly or fully, depending on how much the training benefits your company.

If your company regularly employs at least 20 people, draw up an annual staff plan and training objectives to keep up and improve the vocational skills of your employees.

Assess their current vocational skills in the plan and in the objectives. Think about what kind of changes may occur in the required vocational skills and basic skills in the coming year. Also consider what kind of reasons may be behind the changes. Based on your assessment, draw up the annual training objectives for each staff group.

Pay special attention to the special needs related to training ageing employees.

Also plan concrete measures for monitoring how your employees’ training needs have been met.

Training in accordance with the training plan can be deducted from taxation. The preparation of a training plan is not obligatory for other companies, but the tax deduction can only be obtained from the training provided for in the plan. Employers who are not eligible for the training deduction can apply to the Employment Fund for a training compensation.

For more information about the training deduction, see the Tax Administration's instructions on the employer's training deduction (in Finnish and Swedish)Opens in a new window..