Council initiative: AI guidance for job seekers

Together with the Green Council Group, I filed a council initiative in Kirkkonummi that would give job seekers free guidance on using AI tools. Kirkkonummi is the responsible municipality of the Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Siuntio employment area, so a fixed-term pilot built here would serve all three municipalities. The tools of job seeking have changed, and guidance has to keep up.

What does the initiative propose?

We propose that Kirkkonummi, as the responsible municipality, prepare a fixed-term pilot. In it, job seekers get practical guidance on using tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot or Mistral to edit a CV and applications, put their skills into words and prepare for interviews. The guidance is targeted at those who benefit most and linked to employment plans, labour market training and employment services. The results of the pilot are reported to the Employment and Business Affairs Board.

Why is AI guidance worth it?

According to Duunitori’s research, the share of job seekers who use AI in their job search rose from 18% to 37% during 2025, and nearly half of employers have renewed their recruitment because of AI. The gap is growing between those who can use the new tools and those who have had no guidance on them. People over 50, the long-term unemployed and those furthest from digital services would benefit most. As a fixed-term pilot, the cost stays limited and the impact is visible before any permanent decisions.

Where does the initiative stand?

The municipality is preparing a response to the initiative, and the council will consider it. I will update this post when the response is ready.

The motion in full

Filed with Kirkkonummi municipal council on 19 October 2026. Translated from the Finnish original.

The tools of job seeking have changed faster than guidance on them has kept up. Public employment services have always taught the job-search tools of their day: CV courses, computer skills, applying online, LinkedIn. Artificial intelligence is the next stage in this continuum, but guidance on it has not yet reached everyone. The gap hits hardest those residents of Kirkkonummi whose field changed beneath them. According to Duunitori’s Työnhaku Suomessa (Job Seeking in Finland) study, the share of active job seekers who use AI in their job search doubled during 2025, from 18% to 37%. They shape their CVs and applications with the help of AI, put their skills into words with it, and prepare for interviews with its support. According to Duunitori’s national recruitment study, nearly half of employers have had to renew their recruitment processes because of AI.

Kirkkonummi serves as the responsible municipality (vastuukunta) of the Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Siuntio employment area, which is steered by a joint Employment and Business Affairs Board (työllisyys- ja elinkeinoasioiden lautakunta). As the responsible municipality, Kirkkonummi has both a duty and an opportunity to move the matter forward: a pilot built here could be extended directly to all three municipalities.

Practical guidance on today’s job-search tools would be one of the most cost-effective ways to shorten unemployment, and the employment area already has the expertise and structures to provide it. The investment would be small, and the cost-effectiveness would come from faster employment: shorter unemployment would cut spending on unemployment benefits and bring tax revenue back to the municipality. As a fixed-term pilot, the cost would be limited and the impact could be assessed before permanent commitments. Targeted correctly, the guidance would speed up employment among the groups whose job search is hardest today: people over 50, the long-term unemployed and those furthest from digital services. It would not solve unemployment or promise jobs: it would narrow the distance between what a job seeker can do and what recruitment requires today. The employment area would have the chance to lead in practical AI guidance.

We, the undersigned councillors, propose that Kirkkonummi, as the responsible municipality, prepare for the Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Siuntio employment area a fixed-term pilot of free practical guidance on using AI tools, such as ChatGPT, Copilot or Mistral, in job seeking: for editing a CV and applications, putting one’s own skills into words, updating a LinkedIn profile and preparing for interviews; roll out the guidance in a targeted way to the groups that would benefit from it most; link the guidance to employment plans, labour market training and employment services; and report the results of the pilot to the Employment and Business Affairs Board.

Lauri Lavanti

The Green Council Group

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I have written about how AI is changing work before: will AI take programmers’ jobs, AI helps secure municipal services, but it is not free and my earlier council initiative on digital resilience. Read more of my writing on artificial intelligence.