Tapio Bergholm

Tapio Hannu Antero Bergholm
Born June 14, 1958 Helsinki

Master of Arts 1985, PhD 1997 (Finnish and Scandinavian history), University of Helsinki
PhD (Sociology) 2015, University of Eastern Finland

Historical researcher 2000–08, Senior researcher 2009, Central Organisatoin of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK)
Visiting Fellow 1990–91, Industrial Relations Research Unit, University of Warwick, England
Historical researcher and training secretary, 1984–2000 Finnish Transport Workers’ Union (AKT)
Docent in Finnish history 1999–, University of Eastern Finland
Docent in Finnish and Scandinavian history 1998–, University of Helsinki
Summer work, project work and part time work: camp leader, roadie electrician, film producer, columnist and lecturer

Member of the editorial board 2010-11, Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies
Member of the editorial board 2008–, International Journal of Maritime History
Member of the Working Committee for Ethics 2013–, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health
Chairman 2012–, Finnish Maritime History Association
Chairman 2007–12, Finnish Association of Work Life Research
Vice-chairman of the board, 2005–, International Commission for Maritime History

Research themes
Labour market history, history of the transport industry, and particularly the history of ports, and the history of the gender system.

Publications

Awards
Prize for best labour research 2008 ( for the work Sopimusyhteiskunnan synty II - ‘The Birth of Finnish Welfare II’) , awarded by Labour Heritage

Photo: University of Eastern Finland
Written by Tapio Bergholm (Tomas Sjöblom, ed.)
Translated by Matthew Billington

Dispelling Myths Through Research?

As a researcher, I have often encountered unfounded myths.

For instance, when I studied the activities of the communist-led trade union and the leadership of the Communist Party of Finland in my doctoral dissertation, Ammattiliiton nousu ja tuho. Kuljetusalan ammattiyhdistystoiminta ja työmarkkinasuhteiden murros 1944–1949 (1997), it turned out that claims that the communists posed a danger to society and had revolutionary intentions in the aftermath of the Second World War were unsubstantiated.

In my more recent sociological dissertation, Kaksoissidoksen synty. Suomen työmarkkinasuhteiden toimintatavan muotoutuminen 1944–1969 (2015), I examined Finland’s four-party incomes distribution policy, in which the government, employers’ organisations, agricultural producers’ organisations and the trade union movement negotiated, struggled against each other and found common ground.

In my estimation, the unique aspects of the Finnish labour market can be concisely summarised as:

permanent government interest, intervention and influence in income distribution and particularly incomes policy since the end of the Second World War
gradual growth in Labour market organisations’ role in planning, guiding and even dictating earnings related social security programmes.

In the past there has been much discussion on how labour market organisations have encroached on the decision making power of the government. My interpretation is that a strong double bind has arisen, where the government intervenes in pay policy and the labour market organisations are an integral part of pensions and unemployment security decisions.