Finland: Siltanews – News Desk
Leaders of PSI’s Brazilian and Colombian affiliates gathered to participate in the Trade Union Solidarity Centre of Finland’s (SASK) first official visit to the region and analyze the results of the cooperation project “Expanding the Rights of Health Professionals in Latin America.”
The SASK delegation visiting Latin America included SASK’s Executive Director Juska Kivioja, Financial Director Ville Hirsikangas, and Susanna Haapalainen, Special Advisor for International Affairs at JHL (Finland’s largest trade union representing public service workers) and a member of the SASK board. This international project supports unions in the health sector in Colombia and Brazil to promote public health as a human right, advance workers’ rights, collective bargaining, and gender equality in safe and harassment-free environments.
The meeting agenda in São Paulo focused on analyzing the Brazilian political context and its implications for health workers. During the meeting, representatives of PSI affiliates in Brazil—Luba Melo, Vice-President of the São Paulo Municipal Workers’ Union; Solange Caetano, President of the National Federation of Nurses; and Renata Scaquetti, Women’s Secretary of the São Paulo State Health Workers’ Union—shared their analyses of national health policies and how these have affected the rights of health workers at the local, regional, and national levels. They also shared details of how this joint project has strengthened their unions and increased capacities.
One of the topics discussed was the migration of nurses from Brazil to European countries. Finland is facing a shortage of health and care professionals and has become a destination for Brazilian health workers. Finnish trade unions representing public and private sector workers have jointly developed a guide and organized events with government representatives to develop a joint plan to guarantee that these workers’ rights are respected in Finland.
At the conclusion of the meeting in São Paulo which also reviewed the outcomes of project activities implemented in 2024 and established an action plan for 2025, Executive Director Juska Kivioja expressed her gratitude and reaffirmed the shared commitment of PSI and SASK to strengthening public services, improving working conditions, and defending human rights in Latin America through international solidarity.
In Bogota, the day-long meeting started with a context-setting session with the participation of the vice minister for health and social protection, Luis Martinez Saldarriaga, and the adviser to the director of the social welfare department, Francisco Maltes Tello. They updated participants on the potential next steps on the proposed popular referendum on labour issues that was archived the previous day by the senate, in addition to the current debates on the health system reform that has been a key agenda of health workers since it was tabled two years ago.