Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi at Kesko's Day of Commerce: Everyone must have a chance to work and perform to the best of their abilities
KESKO CORPORATION PRESS RELEASE 24.01.2011 AT 16.00 1(2)
About 600 key persons from trade and industry participated in the Day of Commerce seminar. Speakers at the seminar were Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi; Mikko Pukkinen, Director General of the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK; Timo Räty, Chair of the Finnish Transport Workers' Union AKT; Matti Apunen, Director of the Finnish Business and Policy Forum EVA; Marja-Liisa Manka, Professor at Tampere Business School; Päivi Salminen-Kultanen, Business Director and Partner at T-Media Oy; and Matti Halmesmäki, Kesko's President and CEO. The theme of Kesko's 70th anniversary seminar was wellbeing and competence at work.
Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi said that the rate of employment cannot be increased without creating opportunities for companies to make investments in Finland, for new jobs to emerge and for availability of competent labour. In return for the focus on promoting entrepreneurship, courage to invest in Finland and in jobs here is expected from enterprises, industry and commerce.
"At the same time, we have to provide an environment where everyone has a chance to work and perform to the best of their abilities. The importance of work lies not only in growing the national economy but in the difference it makes to people's lives, giving them an opportunity to express and develop themselves," Prime Minister Kiviniemi pointed out.
Mikko Pukkinen spoke about the structural change in the Finnish industry and commerce in post-war decades. The main result has been that primary production has been replaced by services. A new approach is now needed from individuals in the working life: an active and responsible attitude, continuous learning, an awareness and development of one's own strengths, a strong general view, and a wide perspective.
Timo Räty said that there is too much discussion in Finland about indebtedness, shifting towards the taxation of consumption, competitiveness and workplace-level agreements. According to Räty, it would be more essential to talk about working capacity, livelihood, taxation based on capacity to pay, employment, and permanent, full-time employments.
In his speech, Matti Apunen expressed his wonder that speaking of the joy of work is considered propaganda, even if work is an important part of each individual's life. Apunen reminded that 73% of Finns still think that success at work depends to a large extent on yourself and your attitude.
Professor Marja-Liisa Manka pointed out that material, financial or technological resources that are getting scanter are no longer a guarantee of future success but the basis is the social and mental condition of employees. "This requires a lot both from the employer and the employee, but it is worth the effort," said Manka.
The Day of Commerce was now organised for the 14th time. Kesko has been operating in Finland for 70 years. In his speech, President and CEO Matti Halmesmäki underlined that the competence and working capacity of employees continue to be of decisive importance to the success of companies.
Photos of the speakers at the Day of Commerce can be downloaded at http://aineistopankki.kesko.fi and their presentations at www.kesko.fi/presentations.
Further information:
Paavo Moilanen, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications and Responsibility, Kesko Corporation, tel. +358 1053 22764.
Kesko (www.kesko.fi) is a retail specialist whose stores offer quality to the daily lives of consumers. Kesko has about 2,000 stores engaged in chain operations in the Nordic and Baltic countries, Russia, and Belarus.
