On Friday, 27 February, Iida Nokkala (University of Jyväskylä and former CELSI Research Assistant) presented her Master’s thesis titled “Gender, Wages, and Parliamentary Discourse: Critical Discourse Analysis of Finnish Parliamentary Debates on the Export-Led Wage Model.”

The research examined the December 2024 amendment to Finland’s Act on Mediation in Labour Disputes, which requires the national conciliator to safeguard “the overall interest of the national economy” in draft settlements.

The amendment has triggered debate about whether export-led wage coordination may constrain wage development in female-dominated sectors and deepen the gender pay gap.

Applying Norman Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis and Kari Palonen’s theory of parliamentarism, the thesis explored how parliamentary actors framed equal pay, sectoral deservingness, and collective bargaining autonomy.

Four key discourses were identified: gender equality, national economy, deservingness, and collective bargaining autonomy.

The discussion highlighted tensions between macroeconomic coordination and equality objectives, raising broader questions about the governance of wage formation in coordinated market economies.

Many thanks to the team and guests for their valuable feedback and stimulating discussion.

#CelsiFrontiersSeminar #GenderPayGap #CollectiveBargaining #ParliamentaryDebate #LabourMarkets