Retail employment falls in Finland and Lithuania despite sales growth

Retail sales in Finland and Lithuania have returned to growth after a prolonged slump, with year‑on‑year increases of about 2–2.5 % and a 3.3 % rise in the January‑June period. However, employment in the sector continues to decline. The Finnish Retail Union (Kaupan liitto) reports that roughly 10,000 jobs were lost across the trade sector last year, including about 8,000 in retail, and an additional 5,000 positions disappeared in the early months of this year. The sector now employs around 270,000 workers, but job numbers have been falling for more than a decade, with an estimated 19,000 positions gone since 2015. Similar trends are observed in Lithuania, where the union cites cost pressures, international competition, digitalisation, automation and AI as key drivers of reduced labour demand. Employers remain cautious about hiring until sales growth proves sustainable, and policymakers are urged to act to prevent further job losses.