Satu Ojala

I am a social policy and labour market researcher and teacher. Expertise areas: population representative survey and register data, quantitative methods, social policy, working conditions, labour market, active labour market policies.

Research projects:

Demanding activation – harming outcomes? The nexus of reformed policies, social harm, and claimants’ life courses (HarmingActivation). Research Council of Finland 2024–2028. PI Satu Ojala.

Kilpailutetut palvelut ja työn laatu [Tendered services and job quality]. The Finnish Work Environment Fund 2024–2026. PI Satu Ojala.

Työssäkäyvät köyhät jälkiteollisessa hyvinvointivaltiossa [Working poor in a post-industrial welfare state]. Finnish Cultural Foudation 2022–2024. PI Mikko Jakonen, University of Eastern Finland (UEF).

Työtä vailla olevien työ- ja sosiaaliturvapolut ja työttömyysturvan poiskäännyttävät vaikutukset [Employment and Social Security Careers of the Population out of Labour Force]. Kone Foundation 2021–2025. PI Satu Ojala.

Fragmented Work Careers? The Finnish Work Environment Fund 2018–2020. PI Satu Ojala. 

The future of work: Opportunities and challenges for the Nordic models. Nordic Council of Ministers 2017–2021. Coordinator: Fafo, Norway. 

Palvelujärjestelmän toiminta: osa-aikatyö ja tilapäinen työ sekä siirtymät kokoaikatyöhön [Employment services, part-time jobs and transitions to full-time employment]. PI Merja Kauhanen from the Labour Institute for Economic Research. Consortium partners Work Research Centre, Tampere University / PI Satu Ojala, and VATT Institute for Economic Research / PI Tomi Kyyrä. 3/2021–1/2022. 

Työllisyyden kuntakokeilujen työllisyys-, kustannus- ja hyvinvointivaikutusten arviointi. PI Kari Hämäläinen from VATT Institute for Economic Research. Consortium partner Work Research Centre, Tampere University / PI Simo Aho. 2/2021–6/2023.

The impact of the COVID-19 crisis on gender equality in Finland. PI Merita Jokela from THL Finnish Institute for Health and We lfare. Consortium partners Tampere University / PI Anna Elomäki, Statistics Finland/ PI Hanna Sutela and Kela Social Insurance Institution Finland. 1.12.2020–31.5.2022.

Working hours, health, well-being and participation in working life – WOW (NordForsk 2015-2021), PI Mikko Härmä & Kati Karhula from the Finnish In stitute of Occupational Health. Tampere PI Jouko Nätti, with researchers Satu Ojala & Timo Anttila.

Discrimination at work and Later Work Careers [Työssä koettu syrjintä ja myöhempi työura] (The Finnish Work Environment Fund 2015–2017), PI Professor Jouko Nätti.

Economic Crises, Well-being at Work and Later Work Careers [Talouskriisit, työhyvinvointi ja työurat] (The Finnish Work Environment Fund 2015–2017), PI University Lecturer Pasi Pyöriä.

Temporal flexibility of work and its effect on later work and family life (FLEXLIFE) (Academy of Finland 2014–2018), PI Professor Jouko Nätti.

Job quality and later work career in part-time and temporary work (The Finnish Work Environment Fund 2013–2014), PI Professor Jouko Nätti.

Spatial dispersion of paid work (SPACE) (Academy of Finland (2010–2013), PI Professor Jouko Nätti.

Successful organizations and employee well-being in knowledge-intensive work (WORK Programme by the Academy of Finland (2008–2011), PI Professor Harri Melin.

Paid work at home (The Finnish Work Environment Fund 2007–2008), PI Professor Jouko Nätti.

Work life research: work careers, working time, temporal and spatial flexibility, time use analysis, labour market, active labour market policies

Areas of teaching: Social policy, work life research, quantitative methods

Selected publications:

Halmetoja Antti, Mäkinen Niklas, Ojala Satu & Jauhiainen Signe (2024) Wage Subsidy for Employers or Social Security for Low-Paid Workers? The Impact of the Earnings Disregard Reform on the Use of Housing Allowance Among Workers in Different Industries in Finland. Social Policy and Administration.

Sippola, M., Jonker-Hoffrén Paul & Ojala Satu (2023) The varying national agenda in variable hours contract regulation: Implications for the labour market regimes in the Netherlands and Finland. European Journal of Industrial Relations.

Riekhoff Aart-Jan, Pyöriä Pasi & Ojala Satu (2021) Career stability in turbulent times: A cross-cohort study of mid-careers in Finland. Acta Sociologica. 

Ojala Satu, Pyöriä Pasi & Riekhoff Aart-Jan (2020) Career stability in 14 Finnish industrial employee cohorts in 1988–2015. Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies.

Ojala Satu, Pyöriä Pasi (2018) Precarious work and the risk of receiving a disability pension. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health.

Ojala Satu, Pyöriä Pasi (2017) Mobile knowledge workers and traditional mobile workers. Assessing the prevalence of multi-locational work in Europe. Acta Sociologica.

Ojala Satu, Nätti Jouko & Lipiäinen Liudmila (2017) Types of temporary employment: an eight-year follow-up of labour market attachment. Social Indicators Research.