Hermes speaks nine languages

The union wants to be better able to serve all of its members, and one way to do this is through better multi­lin­gual information.

At the end of May 2024, the Industrial Union publis­hed the app Teol­li­suus­lii­ton Hermes. It provi­des upda­ted infor­ma­tion about working and living in Finland, for emplo­yees and employers.

The app can be used to look up infor­ma­tion such as rules concer­ning pay, working hours and holidays.

This is an upda­ted version of the previous Hermes app, which came in five langua­ges for those doing seaso­nal work in the agricul­ture and fore­stry sectors. Now, the app – in nine langua­ges – inclu­des the terms of emplo­y­ment for five sectors. It serves two out of three of those working in the union’s collec­tive bargai­ning sectors.

Access to correct and up-to-date infor­ma­tion is a funda­men­tal right of every employee.

As a part of this update, the largest sector of the union, the tech­no­logy industry, is added to the app. The other sectors cove­red by the app are agricul­ture, horticul­ture, fore­stry and plant nursery.

The langua­ges in the app are Finnish, Swedish, English, Ukrai­nian, Russian, Polish, Esto­nian, Roma­nian and Viet­na­mese. One of the goals of the app is to use plain language. Collec­tive agree­ments can be complica­ted and couc­hed in complex language. In the app, these are explai­ned in a way that is easier to understand.

– Access to correct and up-to-date infor­ma­tion is a funda­men­tal right of every emplo­yee. By provi­ding infor­ma­tion about terms of emplo­y­ment in multiple langua­ges, the Teol­li­suus­lii­ton Hermes app supports the diver­sity in Finnish working life, says Head of the Foreign Labour Unit, Riikka Vasama, in the union press release.

– At the same time, it allows emplo­yees and emplo­yers to inte­ract on a more equal footing at the workplace by distri­bu­ting more and more infor­ma­tion to all emplo­yees. Making sure each and every person is aware of the law and their terms of emplo­y­ment bene­fits every­one, she adds.

Free, safe, anonymous

You can down­load the app, for free, at all main app stores.

The app is working not only in our two natio­nal langua­ges Finnish and Swedish, but also in English, Ukrai­nian, Russian, Polish, Esto­nian, Roma­nian and Viet­na­mese. The Union website gives infor­ma­tion in these nine languages.

As there are many langua­ges to use, it is also possible to switch between langua­ges. This can be help­ful if an emplo­yee and emplo­yer do not have a common language to commu­nicate. Both can check the app in a language they understand.

To open the most impor­tant infor­ma­tion in the app, no mobile connec­tion is needed. Howe­ver, opening the links and upda­ting the app, you need a mobile connection.

If you have down­loa­ded the earlier version of the app, you will need to update it. There are many new features.

The Teol­li­suus­lii­ton Hermes app does not collect any perso­nal data of the users. Also, using the app is fully anony­mous. It is abso­lu­tely free to down­load and use.