Care sector employees face violence every day, but the punishment for this is not the same as the punishment for violent resistance to a public official.
“In Tehy’s view, the legislative proposal to amend Section 16 of the Criminal Code currently prepared by the Government is completely inadequate. If the proposed amendment is passed according to the proposal, even the Government Programme goal to protect paramedics from violence is not fulfilled,” says Tehy President Millariikka Rytkönen.
“ Protection by law in violent incidents must absolutely be extended to apply to all social and healthcare sector employees. However, this is far from a reality as the Government is unable to improve even the safety of paramedics with their current proposal,” says Rytkönen.
If the Government was willing to make a real impact on the violence targeted at social and healthcare sector employees, it would also establish standards for anti-violence work, i.e. the minimum actions taken to prevent violence. There are several standards in industry to ensure the sector’s occupational safety, but not in the social and healthcare sector.
Available actions include, for example, training on how to act in a violent incident, updating the onboarding guide, carrying out safety walks and establishing better policies for violence.
Tehy demands that a national survey to be carried out and minimum safety standards for the social and healthcare sector to be established based on the survey. This will not only improve the occupational safety of employees but also make the administrative tasks of employers easier.
In general, a safe, non-violent workplace must be a minimum requirement in the social and healthcare sector. At present, employees are left alone after a violent incident and are responsible for filing a report on an offence as employers do not file these on the basis of the offender being a patient.
Tehy believes that the employer must have the legal power to file a report on an offence even if the offender has an established patient relationship. The offender may not have more extensive legal protection than the victim.
Tehy lawyer Inka Lehtinen also notes that employers must act according to the current law.
“The Occupational Safety and Health Act requires employers to actively prevent work-related violence. We constantly receive messages from our members that the employers do not even read the employees’ reports related to violence. It is the employer’s duty to read the employees’ reports and take action,” says Inka Lehtinen.
Enquiries: Tehy lawyer Inka Lehtinen, [email protected], tel. +358 (0)40 525 9895.
