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Rail strike ends, service resumes Friday

Railway workers' wages will see an increase of four percent this year followed by a two percent bump next year, according to employer's group Palta.

IC2-juna Turun päärautatieasemalla, ihmisiä kävelemässä asemalaiturilla, asemalaiturin vieressä työmaa-aitoja.
File photo. Turku Central Railway Station. Image: Jouni Koutonen / Yle
Yle News

A railway sector strike has come to an end after the railway workers' union RAU and Service Sector Employers' group Palta agreed to a deal offered by the National Conciliator's Office on Wednesday.

"It will take about 24 hours for traffic to return to normal," said Elina Vuoksenmaa, communications specialist at state-owned railway firm VR.

Service will return early on Friday with the first train leaving at 3:40 am from Kajaani to Helsinki. The K train will be the first local commuter rail service departing from Helsinki to Kerava at 4:04am on Friday, according to the company.

VR also said they would refund all train tickets purchased during the strike. Tickets can also be transferred to a later date free of charge.

Railway workers' wages will see an increase of four percent this year followed by a two percent bump next year, according to the employer's group Palta.

It added that the agreement also includes an occupational well-being effort and extensive possibilities to agree on working time regulations on a local basis. Palta said disputes during the final stages of the negotiations were mainly related to parameters of the occupational well-being project, specifically rest periods.

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