The Minister of Trade and Industry Mauri Pekkarinen is dismayed about a spate of lay-offs announced in past weeks by large companies.
He expressed his surprise with those firms which were dismissing staff just after issuing sizable dividends to shareholders.
In an interview given to the Centre Party's newspaper Suomenmaa, Pekkarinen called for moderation by businesses when considering downsizing measures.
He said it was short-sighted of companies to cut personnel while at the same time turning a profit.
Pekkarinen said the wave of lay-offs was affecting the government's aim of creating 100,000 new jobs.
YLE24