Pay security
If the player contract is not an employment contract, only the club that is the contractual partner is liable for unpaid wages.
The purpose of the Pay Security Act is to secure the payment of an employee’s employment-related receivables in case of the employer’s insolvency. In this case, the state pays the employment-related receivables to the employee and charges the wages paid to the employer. Here, the state acts as a guarantor of the payment of wage receivables. The essential thing here is that the player contract is considered to be an employment contract.
If the player contract is not an employment contract, only the club that is the contractual partner is liable for unpaid wages. An employee is entitled to pay security if the work took place in Finland. Thus, also foreign players who have come to Finland are entitled to pay security. Pay security must be applied for within three months of the falling due of the wages. Usually, wages fall due for payment once a month. If wages have fallen due, have not been paid on the due date and the player and the club agree on a later time of payment but the wages are not paid on that date either, the due date is primarily counted from the original due date.
Usually, no more than two months term of payment should be given for overdue wage receivables if you want to retain the right to pay security. Pay security is applied for from the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centre) of the employer’s domicile. Pay security applications are available on the ELY Centre website. In case of damages due to an illegally terminated player contract, for example, pay security can be applied for within three months of the publication of a legally valid court judgement. In these cases, a claim for damages is therefore first instituted, on which a court judgement must be obtained, and the pay security application can be submitted after the judgement. Eligibility for pay security requires that the employer is insolvent.
Insolvency refers to bankruptcy, for example, or the employer not being able to pay undisputed receivables on time. If the employer denies the wages concerned by the pay security in terms of their grounds or amount, the application for pay security is often rejected. This does not mean that the receivables would be unfounded. The pay security authorities simply do not investigate the grounds for the receivable. In that case, it is necessary to file a claim in the court, and the court must investigate the grounds for the disputed receivables, and only after that can the overdue wages be paid from pay security.
The pay security authorities may also decline from the payment of pay security in case there is reason to suspect abuse pursuant to the Pay Security Act in the matter. The abuse can be, for example, an arrangement that specifically aims to obtain pay security through diverse contractual arrangements. The maximum amount of pay security is €15,200 (the maximum amount can change annually) per employee and employer. Also ordinary and reasonable expenses, such as travel expenses, can be paid through pay security. One should not make agreements with the club on overdue wages in which the player loses the right to pay security.
