"A note for every international academic who has just arrived at a Finnish university, or is about to. Welcome. You are about to meet a beautiful country, a functional public sector, and, almost certainly, a head of department who ..."

"...might be very happy to hand you the teaching load that longer-serving Finnish colleagues no longer want. Before you accept it as "how things work here," read the collective agreement. Finnish universities operate under a binding, nationally negotiated collective agreement ..."

"...between the employer association Sivista and the trade union negotiation body JUKO. It is not a guideline. It is law for your employment relationship."

"A few concrete numbers that every new international hire should know: • The annual total working time for teaching and research staff is 1,612 hours. Not 2,000. Not "whatever the schedule requires." 1,612."

"• Teaching is assigned through an annual work plan, drafted jointly with your supervisor. Not unilaterally by the head of department. The plan must reflect your actual duties within the 1,612-hour envelope."

"• If you are being asked to teach beyond the cap without a written agreement and extra pay, something is wrong. • For professors, research is generally 30–70%. Your work plan has to respect this."