Training allowance to be paid to reservists serving in military crisis management tasks

By decision of Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen, made on 6 November 2019, reservists serving in military crisis management tasks will be paid a training allowance to strengthen their knowledge and expertise in international matters. The decision will take effect on 1 January 2020.

The amount of the training allowance will be 50% of the basic salary determined at the beginning of the employment for a military crisis management task, and it will be paid in connection with the payment of the first salary. The Defence Forces' salaried personnel already receive training allowance and from now on, reservists will be covered by the same compensation.

Military crisis management tasks have become more demanding, which is why more time is reserved for training. Depending on the task, the average duration of training is currently approximately 4-6 weeks. It is hoped that the training allowance will encourage a greater number of reservists to apply for military crisis management tasks than before. In addition, the training allowance will partly compensate reservists for loss of earnings while in training and make military crisis management tasks financially more motivating.

The cost impact of the training allowance for reservists will be approximately EUR 860,000 per year. It will be covered from the current appropriations for military crisis management.

More information: Sami Roikonen, Staff Officer, Ministry of Defence, tel. +358 295 140 442.