The current status of the centralization process of the Finnish Sign Language interpreting services
(March 2009)
The Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela) has established a working group for the preparatory work of the centralization process of the Finnish Sign Language interpreting services. At the moment, the interpreting services for the Deaf have been organized under the Services and Assistance for the Disabled Act (380/87) of the Finnish legislation. The interpreting services have been under the responsibility of the municipalities, which means that there are great regional differences in the accessibility and availability of interpreting services. After the centralization, the interpreting services will be organized by the state of Finland, i.e. by the Social Insurance Institution of Finland.
The interpreting services will be detached from the Service and Assistance for the Disabled Act, and a new Interpreting Act will be introduced in the Finnish legislation. The responsibility of producing interpreting services will thus be devolved from the municipalities to the state. The centralization ought to take place in 2010, but the actual duration of the process is yet to be seen.
The Finnish Association of Sign Language Interpreters (SVT) monitors the centralization process and informs its members as frequently as possible. For more up-to-date information in Finnish, please visit www.tulkit.net/valtiollistaminen/ or in English www.tulkit.net/in-english and Swedish at www.tulkit.net/på-svenska. If you wish to receive more information in Finnish, you can join a mailing list by contacting yllapito(at)tulkit.net.
Finnish Sing Language interpreting services to be organized by the state of Finland
(Helsinki Dec. 9th 2007)
In Finland, the Sign Language interpreting services will, in the future, be organized by the state: the interpreting services will be provided by the Social Insurance Institution (Kela). Until the present, the interpreting services have been provided by the social services of the Deaf person’s home municipality.
According to the Finnish legislation, Sign Language users are provided a minimum of 180 hours (deafblind 360 hours) of interpreting per year, and more hours may be applied for, according to individual needs. Interpreting services related to studies are arranged to the extent needed by the person concerned for coping with his/her studies. In Finland, interpreting services are considered a subjective right, whereby the services are free of charge for the users.
In Finland, there are approximately 5000 deaf Sign Language users, and the Finnish Association of Sign Language Interpreters (SVT) lists approximately 450 Sign Language interpreters.
As the interpreting services will be transferred from the municipal authorities to the state authorities, the Services and Assistance for the Disabled Act (380/87) of the Finnish legislation will have to be amended.
The change in the interpreting services is made to improve the Sign Language users’ rights to receive interpreting service. As some municipalities are less prosperous than others, the right to use an interpreter has, to a certain extent, depended on the financial status of the Deaf person’s home municipality. The price of the interpreting service will not change, and the right to use an interpreter and the actual work of an interpreter will remain unaffected. The change will be carried out during 2009.
For the Finnish Association of Sign Language Interpreters the change will be a challenge. It will have the greatest impact on those interpreters working on a freelance basis or at regional interpreting centres.
No decisions have been made on the practical arrangements of the future interpreting services. A request of opinion is being drafted, and the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela) is establishing a working group for the preparatory work.
The Finnish way of carrying out the Remember a friend! -campaign
The Finnish Association of Sign Language Interpreters runs annualy a SAF support campaign which is connected to Valentine’s Day and is thus called ‘Kaverille kans’ – ‘Remember a friend’. By giving up the Valentine’s Day’s pay, a Finnish Sign Language interpreter can assist a colleague abroad to participate in one of the EFSLI or WASLI conferences. The Finnish Association of Sign Language Interpreters considers international interaction between Sign Language interpreters utterly important and wants to contribute to the organizing of future campaigns, as well. If a whole day’s pay seems to be too much, one can choose to support the campaign more modestly. Next web-based Rememberg a Friend -campaingn will take place between Feb 14th and May 1st. 2008!
Remember a friend – take an intern!
In 2007, it became possible to support the Give up a day’s pay campaign in Finland by donating human capital instead of financial capital.
During the past couple of years, it has become increasingly difficult for the students of Sign Language interpreting studies to find work experience places and get practical training. Since work-integrated learning is essential for Sign Language interpreting studies, everyone should cooperate in taking the responsibility for educating competent and professional future interpreters. Those interpreters already graduated have themselves had the advantage of learning through work. Now, it is time to remember a friend!