Kela to trial removing personal signatures from basic social assistance decisions 

Kela has started a trial in which customers applying for basic social assistance will be issued decisions that do not feature the name of the claims determination specialist who finalised the decision. Long in planning, the trial will not impact the service provided to customers or the appeal process.

Decisions issued by Kela are typically signed by the claims determination specialist who processed the customer’s application. In a trial launched in April, decisions on applications for basic social assistance will not bear the name of the individual claims determination specialist but will be signed generically by Kela. This does not apply to decisions issued by the Appeals Management Centre or to decisions on applications for other Kela benefits. 

The removal of the claims determination specialist’s name has no other implications for customers. Customers who are dissatisfied with a decision continue to have the option of directing questions about the content of the decision to Kela’s customer service or appealing the decision in accordance with the enclosed instructions. All decisions issued by Kela will still feature the contact information for Kela’s customer service. Also, Kela’s partner organisations can continue to contact Kela’s government assistance line if they have questions about a particular customer's interactions with Kela.  

“It is important for us at Kela that our customers should get answers when they have a situation that they find difficult to navigate. They can for instance make an appointment that will allow a more detailed look at their situation. Customers can also get advice by phone or by visiting a customer service point”, says Sari Hänninen, head of business unit at Kela.

She hopes that the trial will help to highlight the fact that Kela’s staff base their decisions on law and on Kela’s internal guidelines.  

“All of our decisions are made in accordance with our internal benefit guidelines regardless of which Kela staff member finalises them”, Hänninen says. She points out that Kela can continue to perform quality assurance internally even if the name of the staff member who finalised a decision does not appear on the decision notice. 

The appearance of the claims determination specialist’s name has given rise to threatening situations. This is a matter that Kela has had under review for a long time. It is hoped that the trial will help to reduce the potential of such situations occurring.

“We have had about 200 situations annually that involved threats against Kela employees. Even one is too many. Hopefully, the trial will help to alleviate this problem”, Hänninen says.  

The trial will run until the end 2024. After that, Kela will decide whether to take any follow-up action.