Around every tenth wage and salary earner felt they can influence the ecological sustainability of their own work methods in 2023

Men have fewer possibilities to influence the ecological sustainability of work than women

Wage and salary earners' experiences of the ecological sustainability of work were examined for the first time in Statistics Finland's Quality of Work Life Survey 2023. Only three per cent of employees felt they could influence the matter a lot and nine per cent quite a lot. Nearly one-half (47%) of wage and salary earners were able to influence the ecological sustainability of work to some degree.

Women felt they could influence the ecological sustainability of their work more often than men. Twenty-seven per cent of men felt that they had no influence on the ecological sustainability of work. The corresponding share for women was 21 per cent. Close on one-fifth of all wage and salary earners aged 18 to 67 said that they had not thought about the matter at all.

Persons working in the industries of manufacturing, financial and insurance activities, transportation and storage, and public administration felt more often than others that they had no influence on making work more ecologically sustainable. Nearly one-third of the wage and salary earners working in these industries felt this way.

The number of those who, in their experience, had no possibility at all to influence the ecological sustainability of work was highest among those employed in worker-level occupations (29%). The corresponding shares were 24 per cent for lower-level salaried employees and 20 per cent for upper-level salaried employees.

Upper-level salaried employees reported more often than others that they had changed their work methods towards more ecologically sustainable ones

A fairly small share of all wage and salary earners (8%) had made their own activity at work significantly more ecologically sustainable. The share of those who had to some degree changed their work methods to be more ecological was clearly higher (48%). Women had done this more often than men.

Those working in accommodation and food service activities, other service activities and education had most often made changes to improve the ecological sustainability of their work. Around 70 per cent of wage and salary earners in these industries had remodelled their work to be ecologically more sustainable, either significantly or to some degree. Those working in information and communication activities, manufacturing and professional, scientific and technical activities had less frequently made changes than others. However, even in these industries around one-half of wage and salary earners had either significantly or to some degree changed their modes of operation to be ecologically more sustainable in their work.

Upper-level salaried employees (59%) had changed their working habits either significantly or to some degree more ecologically sustainable slightly more often than others. The corresponding share was 56 per cent for lower-level salaried employees and 53 per cent for workers.

The possibilities to influence the ecological sustainability of one's own work are reflected in the extent to which wage and salary earners had made their own activity more ecologically sustainable in their work. Those who had much influence on the matter had most commonly changed their operating modes.

Of those who had a lot of influence, 63 per cent had changed their own activity significantly. Correspondingly, among those with quite a lot of possibilities to influence, around one third had made their activity more ecologically sustainable. Nearly all who had even little influence had done at least something to improve the ecological sustainability of work.

Remote work, energy efficiency and changes in ways of getting around are the most common means of increasing the ecological sustainability of work

Open answers were used to ask for information about the ways employees had of making their work more ecologically sustainable. The most typical ways to take ecological sustainability into account at work were switching to remote work, paper-free office and reduction of business trips. Most of the above-mentioned are specifically related to jobs of upper-level salaried employees.

Other ways of influencing the ecological sustainability of work included starting to use electric cars in the transport sector, introducing an energy-efficient driving style and reducing the use of cars when going to work. Efforts were also made to save energy and to start using energy-efficient equipment. With regard to the equipment, attention had been given to the maintenance and extension of the operating time of the equipment, as well as to their use to the very end.

Part of wage and salary earners mentioned reducing waste as their goal. Workplaces had abandoned disposable tableware, invested in recycling, adopted recycled products, aimed to reduce formation of waste at different stages of work, and lowered the use of plastic. Ecological factors were also better taken into account in purchases by prioritising environmental aspects in choosing suppliers and by buying environmentally friendly products.

Ecological sustainability of work was defined as follows in the Quality of Work Life Survey: Ecological sustainability of work means preserving biodiversity and adapting people's economic and material activities to the sufficiency and resilience of the Earth's natural resources.