Working environment

Saila Quicklund (M)

Mr. Speaker! At this late hour, I begin by moving to approve the committee's proposal in the report.

Today we are discussing the Committee on Employment's report AU8 Working Environment. These are issues that are particularly close to my heart. For several years, I was a head of health and social care, and on a daily basis, I could follow one of the many female-dominated workplaces that are often discussed in the debate on the working environment.

This has given me insights into and knowledge of the importance of working consciously with the work environment and with scheduling. It is about seeing every human being and about the importance of supporting one another. It is about these people being seen and respected for the fantastic work they do. These are important experiences in my parliamentary mandate.

It is a complex and difficult reality we are discussing today. Some goals within the area should therefore be easy to agree on. That people should be able to go to work and come home again is one of them. The year 2023 was a dark year with 55 deaths in Swedish workplaces. The preliminary statistics for 2024 show 44 deaths. We are thus back at the same levels as previous years with Social Democratic governments. But it is, of course, 44 human lives too many.

I am still in contact with parents in Östersund and Strömstad whose sons in their 20s went to work but never came back. It is every parent's worst nightmare. Accidents like these should never have happened.

That the work environment should be safe, healthy and sustainable should be an uncontroversial goal, but the reality is that work environment work requires political leadership, long-term perspective and the ability to implement the right measures where they do the most good. The Government has a zero vision not only against accidents that occur in the moment but now also against all mortality linked to work life, for example long-term illness such as cancer, stress and so on.

The government is strengthening the supervision. Arbetsmiljöverket has received more money in this year's budget. We are giving them expanded opportunities to inspect more workplaces. We know that it is through inspections and follow-ups, together with clearer laws, that the working environment changes. The inspections, especially the physical inspections, are now more numerous, and that yields results.

The Moderate-led government is preparing Sweden for the future. The current work environment strategy expires next year. It aims to create a sustainable, healthy and safe working life and a labor market free from crime and fraud.

Now it is time to evaluate how the previous strategy has fared. Therefore, the government has tasked a special investigator with producing a new strategy for 2026–2030. The assignment is to evaluate what has worked and propose new or adjusted goals for the period 2026–2030, as well as long-term measures that can contribute to making an impact in practice. The assignment shall be completed before the summer next year.

The Moderate-led government does more than that. We have an ongoing national strategy against crime in the workplace with 45 different measures. We ensure that more unscrupulous employers are scrutinized. We ensure that cooperation between agencies and Arbetsmiljöverket, the police, Skatteverket, and Försäkringskassan – actually nine agencies – functions.

We propose a new law that shall protect workers with work permits against wage theft. We have tightened the legislation on workplace environment crimes. The prescription period for gross culpable homicide has been extended to 15 years. The corporate fine has been raised to a full 500 million kronor so that it will hurt properly even for the largest companies.

Mr. Speaker! For me as a Moderate, it is important to say that I believe in entrepreneurship and competition. But I do not believe in the exploitation by unserious actors. Every company that exploits labor and pays poor wages, neglects the working environment, or puts profit before people's lives and health does not only cause suffering; they also risk knocking out decent and serious companies.

Let me therefore be clear. The unserious companies shall not only be audited and fined, but they shall be removed from the labor market. They harm people, the trust in society, and the business community as a whole.

Mr. Speaker! We know that work environment policy is not about symbols. It is about systematicity, about safety representatives being on site, about companies receiving support to do the right thing, about crimes being prosecuted, and that no one, I say no one, should die as a result of their job.

The solution is not to constantly throw out new proposals but to carry out the reforms that are good and that have also been started. That is what the government does every day. But, friends, we are not satisfied. It is precisely for that reason that the Moderate-led government does everything it can in what it does. There are no simple solutions and no way back to a bygone time. We shall create a world-class working environment also in this time.

We shall do that despite all the challenges with a poorly functioning integration and despite that a number of people equivalent to a medium-sized Swedish city are in the country and are forced to support themselves through black market jobs and lousy conditions or turn towards crime. It is a great challenge, but it can be solved if we continue to do the right things and have the strength to maintain the reforms in cooperation and over time.

Mr. Speaker! The Moderates safeguard the work line and protect those who go to work. We do not content ourselves with good intentions but demand results. Therefore, a multitude of measures for a better working environment have been introduced. Let me give some examples.

We have appointed more inspectors at Arbetsmiljöverket and introduced more physical inspections, as I said earlier. The new work environment strategy 2026–2030 is currently being prepared. A mandate to Arbetsmiljöverket on how we can get more safety representatives has been completed. The question of an expanded liability for management is currently being prepared. We have changed the zero vision from that no one should die at work to that no one should die as a result of work.

Information initiatives for small businesses are ongoing throughout 2025. KI, Arbetsmiljöverket, and Mynak are collaborating for better occupational health care. Arbetsmiljöverket is developing a new reporting model for regional safety representatives. Arbetsmiljöverket is also developing 15 new regulations to spread knowledge about a well-functioning work environment effort.

We have appointed seven regional akrim centers. We have also appointed a national akrim forum. Confidentiality is now broken between authorities, and authorities are cooperating, not least. Sanction fees and corporate fines against workplace environment crimes have been increased. The prescription periods have been increased to 15 years for serious workplace environment crimes.

In conclusion, Mr. Speaker: As I have said before, we are acting powerfully, but we are not satisfied. The work for a better working environment for the country's workers must never stop.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Magnus Persson (SD)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to begin by moving for approval of the Sweden Democrats' reservation 8 in the committee report.

The work on the work environment is vital. No one should die at or as a result of their work. Both the regional and local work on the work environment must function, and more people should be given the opportunity to participate in that work. We must tighten the regulatory framework. But we must also ensure that the existing regulatory framework is followed, not least in order to combat the crime in the working life which, like a cancerous tumor, is spreading throughout society today.

Workplace crime consists of deliberate actions where employees are exploited and healthy competition is undermined. It can include, among other things, violations of the work environment regulations. It can, for example, involve work without a permit, work with unsafe working conditions and reduced protection for employees. Work environment and workplace crime are therefore two issues that are closely linked.

Mr. Speaker! As a result of the ambition to reduce the number of agencies and streamline the public administration, we have supported the decision that the Agency for Occupational Health Knowledge, Mynak, is transferred and integrated into the Swedish Work Environment Authority.

Arbetsmiljöverket and Mynak have different mandates today but within the same policy area, which means that there are possible governance and quality improvements with an integration. Arbetsmiljöverket is responsible for work environment, working hours, and posting issues, while Mynak has a mandate focused on the compilation and dissemination of research-based knowledge within the work environment area.

We also stand behind significantly increasing the appropriation to Arbetsmiljöverket on an annual basis throughout the entire mandate period – among other things to increase the work against crime in the working environment, a task that permeates every committee in the Swedish Riksdag.

Mr. Speaker! There is political consensus regarding the need to ensure a functioning local work environment effort, and to achieve that, the number of local safety representatives must increase.

From a political standpoint, we must enable this increase and create a picture of what obstacles exist. One factor that we within Sverigedemokraterna consider hinders the influx into the role of safety representative within manual occupations is, unfortunately, LO's congress decision from 2016 that the trade union organization and the trade union representatives shall have trade union-political cooperation with the Socialdemokraterna.

In practice, it could mean that those who are politically active in other parties are excluded from obtaining trade union positions, including the role of safety representative today, which can be strongly questioned. What does it matter which political party a local safety representative is active in? Other things should be decisive. It should be about knowledge, commitment, and the trust of one's colleagues.

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, there is still a majority of LO-affiliated unions today that act based on this decision. There are several examples of how trade union activists have been forced to choose between their political assignments and their union roles. As a result, the LO-affiliated unions have, through their own political decisions, become an obstacle in the work to get more safety representatives in the country's workplaces. They are opposing themselves instead of welcoming and engaging everyone who wants to become a safety representative with open arms.

This also affects the regional safety representatives, Mr. Speaker. We believe that these representatives, who are largely paid by the state, should be decoupled and granted access to all workplaces in Sweden and not be tied to trade union or political reservations such as that someone at a workplace must be affiliated with a trade union. Regional safety representatives shall have access to all workplaces in Sweden without reservation.

In order to depoliticize and open up the work environment work, it would be desirable for trade unions that require trade union-political cooperation to abandon that decision. It would immediately open up for all members to be able to engage in the work environment work.

Another way to go to open up the work environment work for everyone is to abolish the trade unions' right of priority to appoint safety representatives. We consider, however, Mr. Speaker, that the latter would be a very regrettable development. It is no secret that the work environment work is complex, and it cannot be understated that the trade union organization is a great support for the individual safety representative.

At the same time, Mr. Speaker, we are facing high mortality rates, accidents, and widespread crime in the workplace, and in that case, these reservations are a poor consolation for those who are affected.

The Sweden Democrats' focus lies on the wage earners all over the country who risk their lives when they go to work. Our focus also lies on the relatives who receive a notification that could have been avoided.

Since it is late in the evening, I choose to conclude there.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Camilla Rinaldo Miller (KD)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to begin by expressing my approval of the committee's proposed decision in the report, that is, the rejection of all motions.

During last year's workplace environment debate, 2023's grim figures were mentioned in several contributions – we have already heard them – regarding workplace accidents with a fatal outcome. It was a dark year, when 63 people lost their lives while at their workplace. For 2024, the figure was 43 people. That is 43 people too many.

Accidents will happen even in the future, but we must ensure that the number of accidents decreases, that the number of fatal accidents becomes zero, and that everyone who goes to work is confident that they are met with a safe working environment.

Every day, hundreds of thousands of people go to work, and we often take for granted that the job will be safe. But in some industries, the reality is different. The construction and transport sectors are examples of areas where the risks are high, both for accidents and for people being exploited.

Mr. Speaker! In our role as members of Parliament, we, or at least I, conduct site visits every week in both the public sector and in the private business sector. It is common for these visits to begin with a safety briefing. I experience that the companies and municipal or region-run workplaces that I have had the privilege of visiting take the issue of the work environment seriously.

The majority of all employers are already far ahead in the preventive work. Above all, there is no employer who deliberately wants their employees to suffer a workplace accident with a fatal outcome. We in politics must ensure that employers are given the right conditions to conduct business with a safe working environment for all employees.

Mr. Speaker! The Christian Democrats and the government have, over the past year, put forward proposals, and the Riksdag has decided on several measures for a better and safer working environment.

The construction industry has long had major problems with both safety and cheating. The government has therefore strengthened both the controls and the information work. Those who cheat should not be able to outcompete those who do things correctly.

Here are some examples of such things that have been carried out:

To begin with, supervision has been strengthened. This means that more inspections are carried out by Arbetsmiljöverket with a focus on safety, fall protection, and work equipment.

Efforts have also been made regarding a specific inter-agency cooperation – we have already heard this as well. Arbetsmiljöverket cooperates with Skatteverket, the police, and other agencies in order to be able to jointly inspect construction sites.

Another important step is to inform and educate both employers and employees, often in several languages, so that they know which rules apply.

Finally, regarding this industry, the government has introduced stricter requirements in public procurement. This means that companies that cheat on the working environment shall not be able to obtain contracts from the state or the municipality.

Mr. Speaker! The transport sector is crucial for society to function, but the problems here include, among other things, squeezed driving schedules, cheating with driving and rest times, and a lack of rest. This, in turn, leads to many drivers working under great pressure and stress.

The government is now making several interventions to address these problems through more controls, better technology, and clear requirements for those who are hired.

Examples of measures are more road checks where Transportstyrelsen and Arbetsmiljöverket inspect trucks and driving schedules, as well as expanded digital monitoring with more advanced technology to monitor driving and rest times. Another measure is to set requirements in public procurements and only allow serious transport companies to drive for the state, municipalities, and regions.

Once again, education is important and crucial when it comes to health and safety, for employed drivers but also for employers.

Mr. Speaker! In conclusion, I want to say that the work environment is not just about rules. The work environment is about people's lives, safety, and dignity. No one should have to go to work and risk their health, their life, or being exploited.

Through these efforts, the government shows that it wants to take responsibility for a safer working life, especially in the industries where it is needed most. But this requires both political decisions and that we as individuals care – as colleagues, managers or fellow human beings.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johanna Haraldsson (S)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to begin by moving for approval of reservation 22.

We Social Democrats met at the beginning of the year with representatives from all trade unions within LO. We gathered chairpersons, investigators, ombudsmen, and those responsible for the working environment for the 13 unions that organize drivers, nursing assistants, industrial workers, waitresses – yes, in short, workers throughout the country.

We have talked about the biggest problems in the workplaces and about what they want the policy to do to improve the situation for their members. Representatives for Kommunal and Seko tell how their members are often left alone in tough situations in home care, in LSS-housing and in public transport, where threats and violence have become part of everyday life.

Within hotels, restaurants, and trade, reports are made of high tempo, sexual harassment, and a lack of recovery. Within the industry, wear and tear injuries, vibrations, and chemicals create concern about whether the body will hold up all the way to retirement. The construction industry still stands out as the most dangerous. The risk of high altitudes, noise, and high tempo is constantly present. On top of that, there is a growing work-life criminality. One has witnessed procurement that pressures the conditions and surveillance of the members.

Mr. Speaker! The working environment is obviously not deficient everywhere. There are many employers who take responsibility, cooperate with employees and safety representatives, and actively work to create safe and sustainable workplaces. That is something that everyone benefits from. But there is no doubt that the deficiencies are nevertheless widespread. Most often, knowledge, sometimes will or resources, are lacking to live up to the responsibility one has as an employer. This has consequences for the individual, for the workplace, and for society.

The unions are clear. They want to take their responsibility together with the employers, but they also mean that the politicians must do their part. The unions want to see a substantial reinforcement of the regional safety representatives. Furthermore, they have repeatedly set a clear demand in the talks, namely that safety representatives should not be separated from the unions. They need support, training, and backing from a trade union organization in order to be able to set demands on employers and stop work if it should be necessary.

The unions want to see a crackdown on the fatal accidents. They argue, just like the Work Environment Authority, that most of the accidents could have been avoided if risk assessments had been made, if safety measures had been taken, and if work environment work had been taken seriously. Supervision must be tightened, and it must cost to break work environment rules.

The organizational and social work environment, as well as the systematic work environment management, is still lagging. There is a desire for both more frequent inspections and more possibilities for sanctions.

Occupational health care is unequal today and is not used to the extent that would be needed. The unions propose that we legally regulate accessible and preventive occupational health care. Several federations also highlight the importance of work environment education in upper secondary school and in higher education. No young person should have to experience risks in working life by injuring themselves. Schools should equip young people for a working life, yet they are still placed completely unprepared on the labor market and often become victims of unscrupulous actors.

Mr. Speaker! That many of the unions' demands coincide with those that we Social Democrats put forward in our reservations and motions in the area is no coincidence. We have an ongoing dialogue. If we as politicians are to try to understand what is required for a better working environment, we must listen to those who know what it looks like in the workplaces, on the factory floor, in home care, on construction sites, and in shops.

Mr. Speaker! It is positive that the government will now develop a new work environment strategy. But it must also be the starting point for concrete measures. When the liberal ministers entered the Ministry of Employment, there were already completed proposals on their desks. These were proposals that, with a little political will, could have become legislation for a better work environment. But instead of acting on the proposals, instead of picking the low-hanging fruit, they have allowed an investigation to be conducted on whether safety representatives really must be appointed by the union.

Since the Tidö parties took over government power, not much has been done within work environment policy. Reference is repeatedly made to strategies, but strategies do not save lives if they are not followed by action.

Mr. Speaker! Now that the Swedish Work Environment Authority's report Work Environment 2024 has been released, the picture presented during our conversations at the beginning of the year is reinforced and broadened. It is increased stress, more mental ill-health, continued vulnerability in female-dominated occupations, and large differences in how work environment work functions depending on which industry you are in, what gender you have, and your form of employment. Threats, violence, and offensive treatment are becoming more common, and young women are hit hardest. Stress-related illnesses are among the most common causes of long-term sick leave. Far too many nursing assistants, teachers, and social workers have an unsustainable workload. If we want these occupations to be attractive even in the future, we must take the problems seriously and ensure that the resources in the welfare sector are sufficient for more colleagues.

Mr. Speaker! We Social Democrats have a long series of concrete proposals in our motions and reservations. We want to establish a state crisis commission against fatal accidents, conduct a special audit of the construction industry, strengthen safety representatives and introduce sharper rules against threats, violence, and harassment. We want to tighten employer responsibility, strengthen the Work Environment Authority, introduce more and higher sanctions, and legally regulate preventive occupational health care. Furthermore, we want to better protect wage earners against dangerous chemicals.

We Social Democrats have the will to act so that no one has to become ill, be injured, or die at their work. We have presented several concrete proposals, and we listen to those who know what it is like in the workplaces. We are willing to take responsibility, but the responsibility unfortunately lies with a government that has not shown decisiveness, which time and again has ducked the ready-made proposals that already exist and would rather postpone than deliver.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Camilla Mårtensen (L)

Mr. Speaker! The teaching profession is one of society's most important professions. It is in school that we build Sweden's future, and it is the teachers who make the difference for whether the students will succeed. It is the teachers who awaken interest, convey knowledge, guide young people, and create the conditions we as a society need for both democracy and growth. School is the campfire that creates cohesion and faith in the future.

But what happens when those who bear the responsibility for the school do not themselves receive a safe working environment? According to the Swedish Work Environment Authority's inspection report from 2023, reports of threats, violence, and workplace accidents within the school have increased dramatically over the last decade. During 2022, over 2,000 cases of threats and violence in primary and upper secondary school were reported, and the number of unreported cases is large.

Three out of four schools fail in their preventive work. Risk assessments are missing. Routines are missing. Support is missing. Threats, hate, and violence are neglected and tolerated. It is unacceptable. Teachers should not have to be afraid in their workplace. They should not go to work with a lump in their stomach because they do not know if they will be threatened or even attacked by students or parents. That it has become everyday for many is not just a work environment issue, but it is also a societal problem.

It also affects more than the teachers themselves. We know that the teachers' work environment has a direct impact on the students' learning outcomes. When the work environment is insecure, when stress and fear take over, it becomes harder to conduct teaching with quality. It affects the relationship between teachers and students, it affects the classroom climate, and it affects the students' opportunity to succeed in school.

The government has taken important steps. Arbetsmiljöverket has been given specific assignments to review schools' preventive work against threats and violence. The systematic work environment work must become a natural part of all schools' management and governance.

Madam Speaker! The work environment is a matter of freedom. A safe and healthy work environment is a prerequisite for people to be able to shape their own lives. When free will is threatened by insecurity, exploitation, or crime, freedom is also compromised. Therefore, it is central that we take decisive action against crime in the working life, not least in the welfare sector.

Madam Speaker! In recent years, we have become increasingly aware that crime in the working life is spreading. It exists in the construction industry and in the transport sector, but also in our welfare activities, where we least want to see criminal actors.

In recent weeks, we have been able to read in the media that 62 of our largest assistance companies have employees with links to organized crime. Most of us have heard many similar stories over the years, for example: Police officer, lawyer and pilot convicted of million-dollar fraud; there was no need for any assistance. Another example is: Severely disabled boy did not receive the assistance payments, which ended up in the entrepreneur's pockets.

That type of crime is incredibly difficult to reconcile with. They are not only a threat to the taxpayers' money. A large part of Sweden's security system is built on trust, and that trust is exploited when it affects children, the elderly, and the sick who have both a right to and a need for support. It is completely unacceptable.

Madam Speaker! It is also about something larger. We want a welfare system where people have freedom of choice, where the individual has the right to choose the provider themselves, whether it concerns home care, school, or personal assistance. But that freedom of choice is not possible if the system is compromised by unserious or criminal actors. Then we lose control. Then we lose trust. And ultimately, the very fundamental idea of free welfare is threatened.

Combating crime in the workplace is therefore not just a legal issue. It is also a prerequisite for us to be able to safeguard freedom of choice in the public sector.

Madam Speaker! The Government has initiated several measures to combat crime in the workplace in the public sector specifically. By setting stricter requirements in public procurements, strengthening follow-up, and coordinating the authorities' control measures, we are building a defense against the forces that attempt to profit from the welfare system.

I want to conclude by emphasizing the obvious: Everyone who works in Sweden shall have the right to a safe working environment that is free from threats, fraud, and exploitation. This applies regardless of whether one builds houses, drives a truck, or works as a personal assistant. At the same time, every person who is dependent on support should be able to trust that the public sector functions, that the help is there, and that it is legally secure and not exploited by unscrupulous actors.

Through clearer control, better follow-up and stricter rules, we can both safeguard the core of the welfare system and defend people's freedom.

With that, I move for approval of the proposal in the report.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Ciczie Weidby (V)

Madam Speaker! In the Swedish labor market, labor-related crime has taken hold. Unscrupulous companies dump wages, exploit people, and systematically break laws and regulations to push down costs and gain competitive advantages. It is the workers who pay the price with poor conditions, insecurity, and in some cases, their lives. Companies that follow laws and collective agreements are squeezed out. And the state loses billions in tax revenue. This development is not only unacceptable; it is also system-threatening.

This has not occurred in a vacuum, however. It is clearly a consequence of political decisions. When the Alliance government introduced new rules for labor migration in 2008, a market for exploitation was created. The rules for F-tax were loosened. The unions' opportunities to protect conditions in accordance with collective agreements in public procurement were limited. Together, these decisions laid the foundation for the labor market crime we see today.

What is the current government doing then? Despite often speaking about fighting crime, work-related crime is only mentioned once in the Tidö Agreement. During the two years that the SD-supported right-wing government has been in power, few concrete initiatives have been taken. It is quite remarkable and a betrayal of all workers who go to work every day under insecure conditions and without protection.

Madam Speaker! The previous government took several important steps. It appointed a national delegation against crime in the workplace, established regional centers, strengthened agency cooperation, and presented a national strategy with 45 concrete measures. Vänsterpartiet obviously stood behind much of that work. But this government seems to have pulled the handbrake.

Vänsterpartiet argues not only that the national strategy should be resumed and that all those measures should be addressed; it must also be developed. The secrecy rules, which hinder the exchange of information between authorities, must of course be changed. And a joint authority office should be established, so that the regional centers can be supported in a better way. We also want to see a tip function for trade union representatives. They are, in fact, often the first to discover irregularities in the workplaces.

Madam Speaker! It is not just about crime, but also about people's health. The working environment in the Swedish labor market is in crisis. Streamlined organizations, tightly controlled work, high performance demands, and low staffing have become everyday occurrences. Stress-related mental ill-health is the most common cause of sick leave, especially among women in contact professions. At the same time, we see that far too many workplaces are characterized by powerlessness, a lack of influence, and increasing insecurity.

Behind this lie years of cuts, market adjustments, and a shift in the balance of power in favor of the employers. When efficiency is measured in Excel spreadsheets instead of in well-being, we get exactly an environment where the price becomes injuries, illnesses, and even deaths.

During the time of the alliance government, 2006–2014, the preventive work environment work and the Swedish Work Environment Authority were weakened significantly. The Institute of Work Life was abolished, and training funds for safety representatives were withdrawn. Vänsterpartiet participated in correcting some of this during the 2014–2018 mandate period when we reintroduced grants specifically for regional safety representatives and established a new agency for work environment knowledge.

But the sitting government completely lacks ambition in the area of the working environment. One does not give Arbetsmiljöverket sufficient resources, and one invests less in work environment work than our Nordic neighbors do. The workers pay with their health.

Madam Speaker! The work environment must be safe – for everyone. But that is not the case today. LGBTQI people are exposed to a higher degree of discrimination, microaggressions, and bullying at work. Transgender people are particularly vulnerable. A heteronormative climate in the workplace forces people to hide who they are, which of course affects both health and work performance. Despite this, the government has not presented a single concrete proposal to, for example, improve the work environment for LGBTQI people.

Racism also permeates the entire labor market. Afro-Swedes are overrepresented in low-status jobs and are discriminated against in recruitment processes. Studies show that job seekers with foreign-sounding names are judged based on their background, not their qualifications. Racism is obviously not only unjust, but it is also inefficient and wastes competence. Here too, the government's response is silence.

Madam Speaker! An important piece of the puzzle in the preventive work is the safety representatives. They are the workers' eyes and ears in the workplace. But the number of safety representatives is decreasing, and many of them testify to a tough work environment, harassment from employers, and a lack of support and time. Now, many workplaces are completely without safety representatives.

We must strengthen the role of the safety representatives, not weaken it, as some government parties are considering to do. It is the unions that shall appoint safety representatives. That is the basis of the Swedish model, which the government often says it supports. We welcome the Swedish Work Environment Authority's latest report, which clearly shows that it is better support, training, and respect that is needed, not loosening up who appoints safety representatives.

Madam Speaker! We also see how regional safety representatives are being prevented from doing their jobs. Unclear rules and political opposition prevent them from entering the workplaces where they are needed most. Vänsterpartiet therefore wants to see an expanded right of access. Safety representatives must be able to operate even where there is a lack of members or where there are so-called false safety committees, that is, committees that have been established without trade union influence and which in practice operate on the employer's terms.

Madam Speaker! It is unacceptable that people are still dying at work. Despite the zero vision for fatal accidents, a work-related fatal accident occurs almost every week. Vänsterpartiet wants to see powerful measures. We propose that a state crisis commission be appointed to take a holistic approach. We want to introduce an expanded liability responsibility so that clients also receive responsibility for the working environment when multiple actors are involved. We demand a tightening of the law, harsher sanctions, and prioritization of workplace safety crimes within the justice system.

Here I would like to take the opportunity to move for approval of reservation number 1.

Madam Speaker! Swedish workers deserve secure jobs, a healthy work environment, and functioning protection. We must never get used to people dying at work. We must never accept that people become ill from stress, that racism dictates who gets a job, or that trans people are silenced in the breakroom. Work life should not be a place of fear, but it should be a place for security, development, and dignity.

Workplace crime, fatal accidents, and burnt-out nursing assistants are not laws of nature. They are the consequence of political choices, and it is entirely possible to reverse the development. What is required is political will. The government has chosen to turn its back on the workers. Vänsterpartiet chooses to stand by them.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Jonny Cato (C)

Madam Speaker! I would like to begin by moving to approve reservation 5.

We spend a large part of our lives at work. One can ask the question: How should that large part of life actually feel? Should it be filled with stress, time pressure and worry, or should it be meaningful, secure and sustainable? I believe we all agree that the answer to that question is quite obvious.

Work life should lift people up, not break them down. A good working environment should not be a luxury, but it is a fundamental right. It is also a prerequisite for a society where people thrive, feel well, and have the energy to go all the way. Therefore, Centerpartiet pursues a work environment policy that focuses on the whole, on both the physical and the mental, on preventive measures, on the future's flexible work life, and on welfare's demanding professions.

We know that many work-related problems can be avoided if one acts in time. Therefore, we need to invest more in preventive occupational health and safety work. It is about integrating the work environment into the daily routine and not just handling problems when they have already gone too far.

We want both employers and employees to receive better tools, education, and support to create healthy environments. Systematic work environment management should be more than an obligation. It should be a matter of course. What is most effective – to fix something that has broken or to ensure that it holds from the very beginning?

Let us talk about that which is often not seen – the psychological work environment. Today, mental ill-health is one of the most common causes of sick leave. People are affected by stress, bullying, anxiety, and burnout, often in silence. We cannot accept that. Therefore, we need to invest in improving occupational health care and making it more accessible and relevant for today's needs. We want to see a shift from putting out fires to preventing them.

We also want mental health to receive the same status as physical health. It should be just as natural to talk about workload as it is about noise and ergonomics, because when we do not feel well, we cannot do a good job either.

Work life today is not the same as it was 20 years ago. We work digitally. We work from home. We combine professional life with family life, with studies, and with other commitments. Therefore, the work environment policy also needs to move into the future.

Centerpartiet believes in a modern, flexible and adaptable working life. We want to make it easier to work remotely, have flexible hours and further your education in the middle of your career. We want people to be able to be both parents and professionals, without having to choose.

We see the possibilities of technology, but we also see the risks of boundlessness. I believe many of us can relate to the fact that the inbox is often quite calm between 5–7 PM, but when the children have gone to bed, it starts up again with emails rolling in. Many people work much too late.

The working environment in the welfare sector is also a matter of respect. It is about respect for those who have chosen some of the more pressured professions within health, school, and care, with low staffing and great responsibility for other people. They are the ones who take care of our children, our elderly, and our sick. They deserve our full respect, not burnout.

Centerpartiet therefore wants to improve the conditions within the welfare sector. It is about reducing the administrative burden, giving more time to the core mission and creating space for recovery. We must build a society where it is possible to both work in the welfare sector and have the strength to endure it.

Madam Speaker! Arbetsmiljöverket shall be an agency that supports and coaches, not just inspects. For all of this to work, a strong and modern supervision is required. Centerpartiet wants Arbetsmiljöverket to receive better resources and a developed role, not just as a controller but as a real support to employers and employees. We need an agency that does not just look for errors but that helps to find solutions that inspire improvement instead of just reporting on deficiencies.

Madam Speaker! I had actually intended to stay there, but I now intend to include parts of my reply to the Social Democrats in my speech instead, due to the late hour.

Being ill should not be a financial trap, but that does not mean we should abolish every form of responsibility.

The Social Democrats want to abolish the care deduction. It might seem good at first glance. But it is short-sighted thinking that risks hitting our employers and our common economy hard.

Not entirely unexpected, the Center Party says no to abolishing the karens deduction – not because we lack compassion, but because we think further than today's headlines and the proposal is a very clear act of sycophancy towards the LO unions.

The care deduction has an important function. It is a reasonable balance between protection and responsibility. If we remove it entirely, we risk seeing an increase in short-term absence when people take sick leave for minor ailments. It is not sustainable for small business owners, the sickness insurance system, or growth in general.

Centerpartiet wants to instead direct the support where it makes a real difference, for example to those who have a low income and to those who live with chronic illness.

When we do not safeguard the basic deduction, we also do not safeguard the work principle, the companies' opportunities to hire and grow, or a society where we have the strength to both work and be sick when it is truly needed, but where there is also a personal responsibility.

The Social Democrats promise gold and green forests, but it risks leading to gravel and clear-cuts.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Leila Ali Elmi (MP)

Madam Speaker! That people are becoming ill from their work is a growing societal problem. Stress-related sick leaves are increasing, and those most affected are those working in health and social care professions. It is often there that the working conditions are toughest and the demands are high, resources are scarce and the time for recovery is non-existent. It is not about individual employers who fail. It is about a systemic error, and it requires political accountability.

That is why Miljöpartiet wants the Riksdag to decide on a zero vision against work-related ill health with a particular focus on healthcare and care professions. This means that the state takes a collective grip to reduce sick leaves due to work-related stress, not through temporary projects but as a long-term and binding direction for the entire work environment policy.

A zero vision is not just a goal formulation but also an expression of political accountability. It means that society does not accept that people are worn out and broken down by their jobs. It means that we move from reacting only when ill health is a fact to preventing it systematically.

Whether the work environment is good or bad is not solely about physical risks. It is also about how the work is organized and led and how people are given – or not given – the opportunity to influence their work situation. It is about the psychosocial and organizational work environment.

These are factors that affect people's health every day. Poor management, imbalance between demands and resources, lack of clarity in roles and responsibilities – all of this can create a work environment where people are slowly worn down. Stress, sleep difficulties, depression, and ultimately exhaustion are not individual problems. They are consequences of deficiencies in how the work is organized.

Today, Arbetsmiljöverket has the right to issue sanction fees in the case of deficiencies in the physical work environment, for example, dangerous machinery or inadequate protection against accidents. But when it comes to the psychosocial and organizational work environment, the possibility to intervene is significantly more limited.

The Green Party wants to see a change. It should be just as obvious to be able to sanction serious deficiencies in work management, recovery opportunities, and influence as it is to sanction a lack of fall protection or chemical handling. Mental ill-health should not have to become a normal state in working life. The Work Environment Act must apply fully – even where the symptoms are not visible on the outside.

Madam Speaker! In the ultimate extension of a neglected work environment, there is something even more harmful: offensive discriminatory treatment. It is a work environment problem that leaves deep scars and which all too often is left for the individual to bear alone.

Bullying, systematic exclusion, defamation – it happens in Swedish workplaces, and it can destroy people's lives. The person who is subjected to it risks losing not only their job but also their self-esteem, their health, and their trust in others. In the most tragic cases, it can end in suicide.

The problem is not only that it happens. The problem is also that it is almost impossible to obtain legal redress. Today, there is a lack of a clear legal framework that handles offensive discriminatory treatment as a violation of the individual's right to safety in working life.

Miljöpartiet wants this to be changed. We want to see a new legal framework that clarifies the employer's responsibility, strengthens the victim's right to protection, and provides the opportunity to legally review cases of offensive differential treatment.

But legislation is not enough. A state ombudsman for offensive differential treatment is needed – an independent body with a mandate to receive reports, investigate cases, and follow up that employers live up to their responsibility. In the same way that we have a discrimination ombudsman to defend the right not to be discriminated against, we need a national accountability so that people are not broken down in their workplaces.

Madam Speaker! Without trade union organizing, we would not have a labor environment legislation to debate here today.

A functioning work environment effort requires anchoring, courage, and perseverance. Therefore, safety representatives play a decisive role. They are the employees' primary representatives in work-related matters, not as individuals in their own cause but as parts of a collective. Their strength lies not only in their commitment but also in the mandate they carry from their colleagues and from the trade union movement.

That the government has tasked Arbetsmiljöverket to enable even those who are not appointed by a trade union organization to be safety representatives is not a reinforcement; it is a weakening. A safety representative must have legitimacy, training, and anchoring in an organized side of the employees. Without that, the role risks being reduced to an isolated role without influence and without protection.

It is also crucial that the regional safety representatives are given better conditions to operate. Today, they are only granted access to workplaces where the union has members. This means that workplaces where collective agreements exist or have existed, but where the union presence has weakened, fall outside the protection that regional safety representatives can offer. It is a serious gap in the preventive work environment work.

Miljöpartiet wants regional safety representatives to be granted access to these workplaces as well, as it is often precisely there that the work environment risks are greatest and the need for supervision is most acute. To deny them access means, in practice, leaving employees without protection.

Madam Speaker! The Green Party is a party anchored in several different popular movements. We did not spring from the labor movement, but we have great respect for it and see it as a fundamental pillar of our democracy. We therefore oppose every attempt to weaken trade union organization, as well as the subtle steps that undermine workers' rights.

With that said, I move for approval of reservation 6 and reservation 15.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Patrik Lundqvist (S)

Madam Speaker! On the Swedish labor market, it should be difficult to cheat and easy to get caught, and the punishment should be significant. In many respects, it is unfortunately the opposite today.

Last year, Swedish authorities identified 430 people who were victims of human trafficking and prostitution. One would think that someone should have been convicted for it, but that did not happen. More than 250 of these individuals were women, 150 were men, and just over 20 were minors. Despite this, it was not possible to convict a single human trafficker. It is too weak.

Most of these people are exploited for work and not for sexual purposes. It is, of course, a bit better than if it had been the opposite. However, it makes it a subject of this debate on the work environment and crimes in the working life.

Many of them are naturally exposed to both, and the dark figures risk being enormous, Madam Speaker. One can also plainly state that the situation has developed in a negative direction. During the years 2022 and 2023, at least a couple of convictions were handed down, but during the year 2024, none at all.

This is perhaps the ultimate proof that too little is being done and that the coordination to counter crime in the labor market is not functioning within the state and authorities. Everyone who fights out in the field is doing a great job and getting results. The individuals are identified, but then very little happens. Something prevents it from going all the way, and those responsible for the activities go free. More needs to be done. The laws and the justice system are obviously not keeping up.

One can also observe that this, despite the good work being done across the country, is a fight against the mythical hydra. It is a fight where two new villains appear for every one that is struck down. This is an activity that must be stopped before it arises. More needs to be done so that these individuals and companies do not enter the Swedish labor market.

For example, we must get our workplaces in order by limiting the subcontracting chain and ensuring that everyone who works in Sweden has the right to work here and receives the correct wage. Today, many workplaces, especially within the construction industry, are unmanageable. It is difficult to hold anyone accountable when everyone blames each other and companies quickly disappear when someone starts unraveling what is actually going on.

We must also ensure that we tighten the regulations for support employment and the availability of public support, Madam Speaker. As recently as the other day, it was reported that around half of all assistance providers have links to organized crime. For us, it is unfortunately not surprising that the lax control over who starts companies has led us to this reality.

The government subsequently quickly announced an inquiry to review rules for, for example, relative assistance and follow-up of payments. It may certainly be good to review these matters, but it will not be enough. Greater order and clarity are required across the entire welfare area. Unfortunately, the lax rules that give anyone the right to establish operations within both assistance and other industries – such as taxi and construction – have been far too permissive for too long.

If one adds that those who want to utilize subsidized positions, such as nystartsjobb, are not even checked, it is easy to understand why it is so interesting for criminals to enter such an industry, where the state pays out large sums of money.

We also want it to be possible to blacklist companies and individuals who engage in labor-related crime and repeatedly cheat on the Swedish labor market. They should not be able to receive subsidies and support from the state. Clients of works, who do not want to feed the criminal economy, should easily be able to see if they are considering hiring a proper contractor or someone who has previously cheated and will likely be able to do so again. Arbetsmiljöverket should have the task of maintaining registers of companies that have been issued prohibitions, fines, or sanctions and providing such an opportunity for Swedish clients, regardless of whether they are public or private.

Finally, Madam Speaker, we need to streamline the hunt for criminals with modern tools that, for example, AI gives us the opportunity to use. With greater possibilities to use AI to cross-reference registers and data that already exist within the public sector, one can, with relatively small means, filter out companies that appear to be paying incorrect wages and taxes or that do not appear to have the turnover required for the number of employees they have.

Of course, there are many things to take into consideration so as not to go too far, but as crime spreads and fraud and crime undermine serious companies and risk trust in the state and our societal model, more must be done. And just as when we talk about secret wiretapping of suspects or other matters when it comes to the legislation surrounding companies and official secrecy, we must also let this accompany the development. It simply requires modern tools and that we fully utilize all the information available to the state and the authorities to ward off those who want to enrich themselves at the expense of others from the Swedish labor market.

We also received a small remark at the end that I would like to address. In the C party's presentation here, he spoke very highly of the possibility of working from home. Then he concluded with a jab at all those who cannot work from home.

I understand that he operates in a completely different part of society than I have. In industry, it is extremely costly to lose a night shift because someone is sick. Primary school teachers who go to work and risk infection every day are punished for taking care of our children – which allows us to go to work.

I do not think it is dignified to speak in that way about those who are hardest hit by the care deduction.

Please tell me about those who can take their work home with them with a computer and a phone and sit and email late into the evening when the children have gone to bed. But do not tell me how the industrial workers would be relaxed by not being punished when they are sick during a night shift.

(Applause)

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(A decision was to be taken on 24 April.)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)