28-year-old who left the U.S. for Finland: What work is like in the world’s happiest country—’they essentially force you to take a vacation’

Many workplaces are flexible and allow employees to choose a schedule that fits their lifestyle.

In Finland, typical office hours go from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. One small culture shock I experienced early on is that when workdays often start so early, some people start going to lunch around 11 a.m. Another surprise was how dark it is during the winter when you arrive and when you leave the office.

For many corporate jobs, the work week is 37.5 hours. Overtime hours are not paid in salary, but in corresponding time off. So, if you work a lot one week, it’s normal to do less the next week or take more vacation days. 

If you have an appointment or some obligations for your children during the work day, that can be considered paid time off. In Finland, you’ll often get paid double if you work on Sundays.

It feels like, in Finland, managers and bosses respect employees’ time off. If it’s after 4 p.m., people do not expect their colleagues to respond to an email or answer their work phone. The flexible hours are meant to allow people to have more time in the evenings for hobbies, activities and picking up kids from school.

The amount of paid vacation time you accumulate working in Finland feels like a treasure, coming from the U.S. 

Some people, depending on the industry and their tenure at their job, can have up to 38 paid vacation days a year. For every month you work, you accumulate two and half paid vacation days.

There’s a law in Finland that you have to take two consecutive weeks of vacation in the summer and then you can use the rest of your vacation as you please. I love how it feels like they essentially force you to take a vacation in Finland. During the summer, you actually receive a 50% bonus for the vacation days you do take off.

The whole month of July is basically a ghost town in Finnish corporate offices. You’ll receive many out of office automatic email responses. Generally, important matters are postponed until August at the earliest. 

I don’t have children yet, but seeing how the parental leave worked in practice for my colleagues in several different Finnish offices has made me look forward to being a working parent here.

For example, both parents are offered paid leave and they can decide when to use them in different amounts. Some companies pay full salaries for the first few months of parental leave, some pay half; it depends on the company. But it is typically clearly stated in the contract.

If your kid is sick and you need to leave work to care for them, that is not just accepted but encouraged. In many cases, this can be considered a sick day for the parent as well and can be paid leave.

At both of my previous corporate jobs, we had great health and leisure benefits. One of my favorite things was an app called Epassi where we had a yearly allowance to embrace different sports, culture, or wellness activities that were covered by work. 

With my benefits, I’ve bought a gym membership, passes to our local ski resort, movie tickets and massages. These types of benefits are really nice because you may not think of doing these things for yourself as often as you should.

With access to Finland’s healthcare system, I was able to visit a therapist, dentist and physical therapist for free when needed.

At one of my work places, we had a “recovery room” where an employee could book a session once a month as part of their working time to relax and unwind, with different wellness tools, like a therapeutic sonic bed or lymphatic boots.

This was one thing that was hard for me to get used to at first. Many people are happy with their positions and easily stay in the same role for years. 

I think this goes back to the Finnish philosophy of being satisfied with what you have, because it is enough. However, to be completely frank, I do crave growth and achievements. In Finnish corporate settings, there have been times when I felt like I had to reframe or tamp down my ambition. 

When I spoke with Finnish friends and family for advice about asking for a promotion, many of them were actually a bit shocked. They told me that people don’t typically ask for a promotion. Instead, they will wait until there’s a new opening at their company and apply then. 

One of the reasons why I work for myself now is because I wanted to explore what was possible for my ambition without any limitations or judgment. 

In Finland, the lack of hierarchy in corporate settings is an extension of the overall approach people take to it throughout the country. 

There’s a national joke that you could be casually sitting next to the President of Finland at a hockey game. The same is true in the workplace. No one is really all that special.

In some companies, you can have a coffee chat with the CEO of the company quite informally, just like you would with any team member. Whether you’re an intern or manager, everyone is respected and addressed by their first name. It’s rare to put much emphasis on job titles here.

Overall, I love the corporate culture in Finland. I feel like I’m not just defined by what I do at work, and like I have figured out a true sense of balance.

Jade Ventoniemi is an American who has called Finland home for the last five years. She is a former NCAA basketball player, a content creator and the founder of a marketing firm called Bright Soul Oy. Jade lives in Lahti, Finland, with her husband and their mini poodle. In her free time, she loves to be outdoors, and jumps at the chance to swim in a frozen lake or explore a local forest. You can follow her journey and life in Finland on Instagram or TikTok.

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