Towards better work life together – Wapice builds its own collective agreement

Ever since its founding, Wapice has been all about providing our people with a flexible work environment that suits our employees’ needs. Wapiceans are passionate about our craft and getting our hands dirty with technology, but we also know the importance of balancing work with life, no matter what life throws at you. So, it made perfect sense to strengthen this culture by crafting our very own unique company-specific collective agreement.

Wapice’s first-ever in-house collective agreement was a joint effort between our own staff and labor unions, finalized in the spring of 2023 and officially entered into force on June 22, 2023. This agreement covers all of Wapice’s 350+ employees and packs in perks that cater to families, students, and the well-being of people in all walks of life. Before this, Wapice had been following the national collective agreement of the ICT service sector.

Working together with selected staff and labor union representatives went nicely, and all parties have been pleased with the results. Mikko Suomalainen, representing the Union of Professional Engineers in Finland described the process and end-result as:

“The negotiations went down smoothly, because Wapice had done its groundwork on the collective agreement long before we sat down at the negotiation table. The reasons for wanting a company-specific collective agreement were clearly set from the first meeting, and the goal of reaching an agreement was clearly mutual. Employees were actively engaged in the process, and communication between the employer, employees, and negotiators worked well throughout the journey”.

The new agreement came to life along with several improvements shaped by mutual conversations. The fundamental principle here was that everyone is invited to vote for employee representatives in collaboration meetings and everyone is welcome to pitch in when it comes to setting mutual conditions and practices to make life at work better. Regarding work terms, Wapice offers various benefits like annual leaves, holiday pay, and generous perks and flexibility for both birthing and non-birthing parents, such as extended paid family leaves. Balancing work and freetime is further supported with flexible practices like flexitime slope hours, a working time bank, and arrangements that require an employee’s attendance, such as medical appointments, child illnesses or unforeseen events to close ones. In addition, one can for instance participate in military reserve refresher training without worrying about loss of earnings.

Efforts have also been put into making the agreement simpler and clearer, with plans to keep improving it ongoingly based on both company needs and preferences of the employees. Enhancing local agreeing on working terms and practices is expected to increase responsiveness to emerging situations as well as increase transparency and internal dialogue in the company.

Upon the announcement of the new agreement, Wapice’s CEO Pasi Tuominen summed up the negotiations and the result as follows: “During the process we have used the term ‘the better agreement,’ and it comes with several benefits and improvements. It particularly takes into account family-friendly and student-friendly values. Our goal has been to break down barriers and foster genuine dialogue with our employees, and in this we think we have been successful”.

You can dive deeper into Wapice’s collective agreement here. If the sound of these benefits and the Wapice culture resonates with you, take a look at our job openings and join our growing crew through our career site!