Unions oppose cut in workers' kilometre allowance
The Finnish Taxpayers' Association is among a group of trade unions that has rejected a proposal to cut employees’ kilometre allowances.
According to reports in the Helsingin Sanomat daily, the government plans to reduce the kilometre allowance by two cents per kilometre for employees who drive fewer than 15,000 kilometres annually. In practice this means the allowance would fall from 45 cents per kilometre to 43 cents.
Employees who drive more than 15,000 kilometres annually will have their allowances reduced by nearly half from 45 cents to 25 cents per kilometre.
Government hopes to achieve savings of up to 70 million euros with the planned benefit reduction.
Government will make a final decision on the proposal during its budget talks this month.
'Wrong direction for taxation'
Meanwhile the Taxpayers' Association has described the proposed kilometre allowance cuts as unfortunate.
Association head Teemu Lehtinen said the proposal would transfer the cost burden to employees from employers, who are obliged to reimburse employees for costs incurred during the course of work.
He pointed out that the allowance is based on government's own calculations on the average use of an employee's vehicle.
The association said the proposal sets a worrying precedent in taking taxation in the wrong direction.
The Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions SAK, the Federation of Finnish Enterprises and the Metal Workers' Union also opposed the proposed cuts.
According to Helsingin Sanomat, the proposal may also have caused differences within the coalition government, as some National Coalition and Social Democratic members of parliament also object to the proposal.
In 2010 some 728,000 private sector employees received the kilometre allowance. Of them 38,000 drove more than 15,000 kilometres annually.
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