• Extranet
  • Calendar
  • Forms
  • Unemployment fund
  • Journalisti
  • Mediakunta

The Union of

Journalists in Finland

Suomen Journalistiliitto

  • Contact us
  • News in English
  • About
    • About the Union of Journalists in Finland
    • Union tasks
    • Structure
    • History
    • International
  • Membership
    • Join the union
    • What you get when you join
    • Legal protection
    • Press card
    • Insurance
    • Grants
    • Other membership benefits
    • Membership criteria
    • Membership subs
    • Membership statistics
  • Rights
    • General terms of employment
    • Collective agreements
    • Equality
    • Pay scales in the print press agreement
    • Daily allowances
    • Work and free time
    • Underemployment
    • Freelancers
    • Authors rights
  • Ground rules
    • Ethics
    • Guidelines for journalists
    • Council for Mass Media in Finland
    • Freedom of expression
    • Government openness
Menu
  • fi
  • sv
  • en

rights

  • General terms of employment
  • Collective agreements
  • Equality
  • Pay scales in the print press agreement
  • Daily allowances
  • Work and free time
  • Underemployment
  • Freelancers
  • Authors rights

Freelancers

Freelance journalists working mainly for the printed press are mainly organized within their own member association of the UJF – Suomen freelance-journalistit ry (SFJ), which has over 1 300 members. English pages are under construction.

There is also a freelance branch FAO attached to the Radio and TV Journalists Union, which has over 400 members.

The UJF has in January 2017 launched a media cooperative Mediakunta, a non-profit community for journalists and communications professionals. The idea of the initiative is joint collaboration and to nurture pride in freelancing. For further information, see mediakunta.fi . English pages are under construction.

How to price freelance work?

The reach the level of the average pay of a journalist in an employment relationship, freelancers have to invoice for their work the same as other self-employed people. On average 50% of your invoicing is to cover secondary expenses.

To reach the statistical average monthly income of a print journalist in an employment relationship, your hourly freelance rate, factoring in secondary costs, should be €59.

Journalists’ rates

  • 1 hour’s work: €59
  • Half a day €222
  • 1 day €442
  • 2 days €886
  • 1 week €2 212
  • 4 weeks €8 847

Direct operating expenses and costs associated with carrying out work should also be included in payments. Ordinary expenses that exceed expense items (e.g. travel expenses, daily allowances) should be agreed when you agree on an assignment, and should be shown separately on your invoices. With large assignments you can agree separately on logging work and expenses for specific tasks.

The recommended pay level covers the one-time publishing right to articles, images and artwork. Extensive copyright increases your fee.

The UJF print freelance association SFJ has more calculations for copyright cases, and photographers, graphic designers, illustrators and publishing editors on their website.