The decline in KOKO members’ employment rate levelled off during 2025. The unemployment fund received a total of 157,720 earnings-related allowance applications during the year, which was 2% less than the 161,209 applications received in 2024.
However, the number of applications was still significantly higher than in 2023, when only just over 102,500 applications were received.
The number of first-time applications from newly unemployed or laid-off members was 14,179 in 2025 (2024: 18,987).
The average unemployment rate among KOKO members remained at the same level as in 2024, i.e. 3.9%. The unemployment rate peaked in January (4.4%) and was at its lowest in June (3.6%).
Proportion of completely unemployed claimants up from the previous year
Half of those receiving an earnings-related allowance from KOKO were completely unemployed in 2025. The proportion of completely unemployed claimants was up by four percentage points from 2024 (2024: 46%).
Of those receiving allowances, 33% were laid off (2024: 37%) and 17% were unemployed but worked part-time, did odd jobs or had an income from a business (2024: 17%).
Drop in benefit payments due to law reforms
KOKO paid out a total of EUR 232 million in benefits in 2025, which was EUR 13 million less than in 2024. The drop was mainly due to law reforms that have led to lower benefit levels. The amount paid out in benefits in 2024 (EUR 245 million) was the highest in KOKO’s history.
The most notable reason for the drop in the monetary amount that was paid out was the switch to a ‘staggered’ earnings-related allowance system in the autumn of 2024. The effects of the new system began to clearly show in KOKO’s statistics during 2025.
In the staggered system, the daily allowance drops to 80% of the initial amount after 40 days of claiming and to 75% of the initial amount after 170 days of claiming. In December 2025, 29.6% of KOKO’s allowance claimants were in the first tier and 9.1% in the second tier.
“The rise in unemployment among our members has levelled off, but the situation is unfortunately still not improving. Unemployment remains high, and periods of unemployment are often very long. This is evidenced by the fact that the number of our members falling within the scope of the second tier of the staggered system has been steadily increasing. We hope to see a change in this trend soon,” says Fund Director Outi Mäki.
Click here for the 2025 statistical summary (in Finnish)
