“Our affiliates do valuable work, and the services and versatile support networks they provide for working life are really important to our members. At Akava, we focus on advocacy work, which does its part in helping our members. We work in close co-operation with our affiliates so that we can support the highly educated and voice their views and concerns. We work to ensure that our members have good prerequisites for studying, transitioning to working life and attaining a long career”, says Jaana Ignatius, Development Manager at Akava.
The biggest growth in membership among Akava affiliates was seen in TEK. At the start of 2025, it had 81,427 members, which is about 2,000 members more than at the start of 2024.
“Our only primary purpose is to serve our members in many ways by promoting the interests of the field, providing services and advancing the idea of technology. The student numbers in technology have continued to grow favourably, and it shows in our membership. We will continue our work to the benefit of our members this year as well”, says Jari Jokinen, CEO of TEK.
The biggest relative growth in membership was achieved by Social Science Professionals YKA, which had 541 more members at the start of 2025 in comparison to 2024.
“Trust in your union’s support and expertise at the different stages of working life shows in YKA’s growth numbers. We have invested in helping students to find working life information and providing all our members with peer support in a community within their own field. We are here for our members so that working life would be human-sized for them. Putting your heart into the work yields results”, says Simo Pöyhönen, Executive Director of Social Science Professionals YKA.
The Board of Akava confirmed the number of members in its meeting on 25 February 2025. More detailed information can be found at akava.fi/en/affiliates/
More information
Jaana Ignatius, Development Manager at Akava, tel. +358 (0)40 700 2225
Jari Jokinen, CEO of TEK, tel. +358 (0)400 914 839
Simo Pöyhönen, Executive Director of Social Science Professionals YKA, tel. +358 (0)10 231 0362
Tomi Husa, Specialist at Akava, tel. +358 (0)44 366 4011
