Response to interpellation 2022/23:56 on an equal and safe working life
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
The debate concerns an equal and safe working life. L argues that Sweden still has some way to go towards economic equality 1 and that wage differences have decreased thanks to reduced gender segregation 1. L wants to work to increase the entry of foreign-born women into the labor market 1 2 and wants to analyze why men and women make different career choices 2. L emphasizes that functioning childcare is a prerequisite for equality 3. S argues that a fully individualized parental leave is the most important reform 4. S believes that female-dominated occupations have a worse working environment 5 and wants childcare during inconvenient working hours 6 7. S requests the government's reforms 4.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Statsrådet Paulina Brandberg (L)
Madam Speaker! I thank Sofia Amloh for an interpellation on a very important area.
Sofia Amloh has asked me if I intend to take any initiatives to counter the gender segregation that exists in the Swedish labor market. She also asks what measures I intend to take to reduce the unequal difference between women's and men's lifetime earnings. Finally, she asks what initiatives I am prepared to take in view of the deficient working environment, particularly in the female-dominated sectors.
An equal and secure working life is a priority issue for me as Minister for Equality and Deputy Minister for Employment. Women and men should have the same opportunities and conditions regarding paid work that provides economic independence throughout life. Sweden still has a long way to go towards economic equality.
There is a strong gender segregation in the Swedish labor market. From SCB's statistics, it appears that only 4 of the 30 most common occupations have an even gender distribution. This gender distribution in the labor market can primarily be explained by the fact that women and men to a large extent choose different educations. Over a number of years, however, occupational segregation has gradually decreased. Women are working in increasingly more male-dominated occupations, and men are found to an increasingly greater extent in female-dominated occupations. In addition, more and more occupations have become gender-balanced, meaning they have at least 40 percent of each gender.
The wage gaps between women and men have trend-wise decreased over two decades. This is partly due to a reduced gender segregation, where women have increasingly become managers. It is also due to the fact that women's wages on average have increased more than men's wages. Over the last seven years, relative wages have generally increased more in welfare occupations, such as within the healthcare sector and the education sector, than within typical occupations within the manufacturing industry.
Women always take a greater responsibility for housework and are on parental leave to a significantly greater extent than men. In addition, it is still significantly more common for women to work part-time. Taken together, this means that women also receive a lower pension. These are the main reasons for differences in lifetime earnings.
The difference in labor income between women and men has, however, decreased by approximately 6 percentage points during the last decade. This can primarily be attributed to a reduced hourly wage gap, which in turn can be explained by the labor market becoming less gender-segregated, but also by reduced differences in actual hours worked.
Combating wage discrimination and unjustified pay differences between women and men is a priority issue for the government. One tool to make unjustified pay differences visible is the work with wage mapping. The Discrimination Act contains provisions, including requirements for all employers to conduct an annual wage mapping for the purpose of detecting, rectifying, and preventing unjustified pay differences between women and men. The Equality Ombudsman supervises that the Discrimination Act is followed.
Women born abroad have a lower employment rate than those born domestically, which also contributes to economic inequality. I intend to work to increase the opportunities for women born abroad to enter the labor market. It is an important step towards both reduced segregation and giving all women and men the same opportunities and conditions regarding paid work that leads to increased economic equality. Currently, an investigation is underway that is to propose improved labor market establishment for women born abroad (Ju 2022:05). Furthermore, the Gender Equality Authority, Arbetsförmedlingen, Försäkringskassan, the Swedish Migration Agency, the National Board of Health and Welfare, and the County Administrative Board of Västernorrland have been commissioned to develop a joint agency plan to increase the entry of women born abroad into the labor market.
Regarding Sofia Amloh's question on the work environment in female-dominated occupations, a good work environment is of great importance for both growth and employment, as well as for good, equal, and egalitarian health for workers. Systematic and preventive work on the work environment is the foundation of a good work environment. It must be a natural part of the operations for all employers. The Government and the authorities in the work environment area work together with the parties in the labor market to create a good work environment. It is the employers, the employees, and their representatives who together carry out the daily work on the work environment at the individual workplaces. A continued high level of ambition for work environment policy is needed to meet various challenges in working life. The work for an improved work environment goes hand in hand with workers' working conditions and security in general. The implementation of the work environment strategy 2021-2025 is an important part of strengthening the work to achieve the goal for work life policy.
Sofia Amloh (S)
Madam Speaker! I would like to begin by thanking the Minister for the answer and for the opportunity to debate this important issue this late Tuesday evening in December.
When I both read and hear the answer, I am pleased. There are several examples of the previous S-led government's policy that remain and are described here by the Minister.
Madam Speaker! The Minister has several clear problem formulations and descriptions of how the situation looks in Swedish gender equality policy. To make it even clearer, I intend to exemplify more of that.
To reach the goal of full employment and women's economic independence, women's participation in the workforce needs to increase, but also men's presence and engagement in the home. A sustainable working life with balance between family, work, and leisure is a prerequisite for this.
The most individually significant reform for increased equality in working life and family life is a fully individualized parental insurance. The unequal uptake today leads to poorer wage development and lower pensions for women. Women's opportunities to advance in working life also decrease, which, for example, leads to fewer becoming managers or obtaining other leadership positions. This reinforces unequal structures where women take more responsibility for unpaid domestic work while the men can devote their time to gainful employment. Effects in the right direction are seen when policy through legislation has steered towards a more equal uptake. It is a matter of earmarking parental days.
When women have children, the risk of sick leave increases significantly. The same does not apply to men. Studies show that 15 years after the first child, the income difference between mother and father has increased by 32 percent. A shared parental leave reduces the wage gap between women and men. For every month that the father is on parental leave, the mother's salary increases by just under 7 percent. It is clear that it has significant effects.
There are amounts of statistics, studies, and investigations that show that we have large disparities between the genders. Sick leaves, mental ill-health, and insecure employment show that there are unreasonable differences in area after area. We have it in black and white and all the evidence we need that we have gender norms that make us sick and even lead us into death.
Madam Speaker! The Minister believes, just as I do, that politics can shift norms, but let us do it then! I demand to know what policy the government wants to change. Is it to continue conducting social democratic policy, which I have nothing against? What specific reforms does the government have on its reform agenda for this mandate period?
Jim Svensk Larm (S)
Madam Speaker! I want to start by thanking Member Sofia Amloh for raising this important issue. Having a job is a central part of a society. It gives the individual the freedom to influence their own life and places the person in a context of community. But what is so wonderful about more people having a job is not only found in the individual, but it also exists in society. By having more people working, we get more resources to strengthen the welfare so that the safety nets we are to have are there when we need them.
Unfortunately, we still see differences between men and women in the labor market. This concerns not only the proportion of men and women who work and their wages but also their conditions. Women's workplaces still tend to be deprioritized. Therefore, it is important that we do everything in our power to get more people into work with good conditions. It is about using a range of tools, everything from studies to subsidized employment and investments in the working environment. It is therefore of the utmost importance that we constantly work to reduce the gaps in society.
The economic gap between men and women is around 3.6 million kronor over a lifetime. It is not acceptable. Who here can look their daughter in the eye and say that she should earn 3.6 million kronor less because she is a girl? For me, it is incomprehensible that we, in the year 2022, have still not addressed the gap that exists in society. Equality must be taken into account in all areas of politics, because it is not something we can do alone within labor market policy.
Madam Speaker! For me, the issue of childcare during inconvenient working hours, so-called "nattis", is something that is close to my heart. When I am not in the Riksdag, I work in the pulp and paper industry and know how difficult it is to manage everyday life as a shift worker. My colleagues and I work evenings, nights, and weekends. We work on Christmas Eve and Midsummer Eve, because Sweden needs production every hour of the year.
This is not something we are alone in within the industry. It is the same across a wide range of industries. We are moving towards a society that is increasingly built to offer service almost around the clock, regardless of what it concerns. Care in the municipalities, healthcare in the regions, and trade in the shops are some of the industries where operations are conducted for the greater part of the day.
But unfortunately, preschools and after-school activities usually offer their services between 6:00 and 18:00, which does not harmonize with a large part of society today. Since we know that women generally take a greater responsibility than men for the family, this can mean that women reduce their working hours to make ends meet in everyday life or due to the lack of night-time care.
Therefore, I want to ask Minister Paulina Brandberg how she, as Minister for Equality, views the need for childcare during inconvenient working hours.
Johanna Haraldsson (S)
Madam Speaker! I would like to thank Sofia Amloh, who raises a number of extremely important issues in her interpellation on how we create a safer and more equal working life.
The gender-segregated labor market, equal incomes, and the work environment in female-dominated industries are interconnected, but they require different measures in several areas: the work environment, education policy, our social security systems, and labor market policy, to name a few. In all these areas, measures are needed to move forward and achieve a more equal and secure labor market.
Some examples of things that we know have had an effect and influence in the right direction include, among others, norm-breaking pedagogy in preschool and school that challenges traditional gender roles and can contribute to young people choosing paths to a lesser extent based on gender and instead choosing more based on genuine interest. This is something that, in the long run, can break the gender segregation in the labor market.
Quotas for parental leave, which Member Amloh raised, is another example that we have seen has an effect on the distribution of responsibility for children and home and women's participation in the labor market. This ultimately leads to more equal incomes.
I do not doubt the Minister's will, intentions, or commitment to the issue, but I have, given the government's largest support in the Riksdag and its political direction, difficulty seeing how this will be able to result in effective measures for a more equal working life. None of my examples, rule-breaking pedagogy in schools or additional reserved parental days, are supported by Sverigedemokraterna. Measures that are in the government's toolbox risk remaining there when Sverigedemokraterna watch over the government. If the tools remain in the toolbox and will not be relevant for the government to use, what other ways can Minister Brandberg see as good ways forward for a more equal working life?
I also have a question concerning a wording in the government's and the Sweden Democrats' palace agreement, which at first glance seems to concern the area we are discussing today: "More tools and room for flexibility to combine a high labor market participation with family life." What does this mean for the minister? What type of reforms could become relevant linked to this wording in the palace agreement?
Statsrådet Paulina Brandberg (L)
Madam Speaker! The government will not conduct Social Democratic policy, but we will, of course, have our own direction. I can, however, assure the interpellator and other debaters that the government will in no way have a lowered level of ambition in these matters.
There are several reasons why women have lower incomes than men. This means that measures are required within several policy areas. Crucial to reducing the unequal difference in lifetime income is a labor market where women and men can participate on the same terms. It is good for society, and it contributes to fulfilling the goal of economic equality.
As has been pointed out here, the pay gap between women and men continues to decrease, but it is going far too slowly. There are several reasons why women have lower incomes than men.
Regarding the formation of wages themselves, one of the pillars of the Swedish labor market model is that the parties in the labor market have a primary responsibility for wage formation. In the collective bargaining process, where the parties negotiate the central collective agreements, the wage differences between men and women are one of the issues that usually recur. It is important that the Swedish labor market model is protected. This government will not step in and make any difference there.
As has been pointed out here, another explanation for the income differences between women and men is that the parental leave is unevenly distributed. Since parental leave was introduced in 1974, women have taken the majority of the parental leave days. Men today take around one-third of the parental insurance. During 2021, men took 30 percent of the net days and women 70 percent.
We have previously had a reform of the parental leave which I believe has been very important precisely because it has shifted norms. This shows that it is possible to shift norms with political tools.
As the previous Minister pointed out, this government has been in power for seven weeks today. We need to return to exactly how our policy will be designed in detail, but we are positive about using political tools to shift norms.
In order for us to have an equal labor market and for men and women to be able to participate on equal terms, it is, as the interpellator and the other debaters have pointed out, a prerequisite that one can combine family life with work life - also through a functioning childcare. I see this as an important equality issue if we are to move these issues forward. It is also something that I believe can shift norms in the right direction.
When it comes to which measures should be developed, I and the government will rely on the experts who already today have the assignment to evaluate and analyze the differences that exist in the labor market - they shall also analyze the different career choices and different choices of education that men and women make - in order to see what other political tools can be used to hopefully make these differences decrease at a faster pace.
Sofia Amloh (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister, for your answer! I would like to take this opportunity to say that I have great respect for the Minister's previous professional career, which has had a great significance and made a great difference. It is important that many of us are present in many parts of society, because it is needed. It is a constant struggle.
Then I perhaps want to emphasize that I feel it is a bit extra secure that it is a liberal politician who holds this post in the government.
I think it is positive that the Minister says that the reform of the parental leave and parental leave has had an important significance, that it is something that is about moving norms. We have seen that. I hope that the policy that is now to come from the government can move these norms even further, because we need that.
I want to go back to the fact that we have established that Sweden has a very gender-segregated labor market. As the Minister says, we need to look at and analyze this. I would, however, like to assert that there is quite a lot that shows what choices are made and how gender-segregated it is. In that regard, I refer back to the statistics from SCB that the Minister himself highlighted in his response. Only 4 of the 30 most common occupations have an even gender distribution. It is possible to drill down further into that to see exactly how skewed or even the gender distribution is.
When it comes to the female-dominated occupations, there is a worse working environment and a larger proportion of insecure employment. These are relevant connections for me that cannot be ignored here.
Madam Speaker! The Minister's answer raises more questions. What is a high level of ambition for this government? Will it be noticeable in the regulatory letters to the agencies? I would still like to say that the Social Democratic-led government has been very clear in the regulatory letters to the agencies. Will the ambition continue to be at least as high and clear?
The Minister also mentions that the parties are important and that it is important to work and cooperate with them. In what way does the government intend to work together with the parties to improve women's working environment? A certain description from the Minister is needed. What does it mean in practice to work together or cooperate?
I see a clear connection between sufficient resources for the welfare system and the working environment. My question is: Does the government also?
Jim Svensk Larm (S)
Madam Speaker! I will return to night-time care a little bit. I meet many parents when I am out at workplaces. A question I often carry with me when I come to industries where work is performed outside of daytime hours is how it works for single parents to work there. In the best cases, I hear that it works well with night-time care, but all too often I hear stories about that there are not enough places and that society gives feelings of guilt to single parents who use night-time care. In the worst cases, I also hear how parents have been forced to turn down work due to a lack of childcare at inconvenient working hours.
I asked the Riksdag's investigation service to compile some figures ahead of this debate. What we see is that in the autumn of 2021, nattis was offered in 189 of Sweden's 290 municipalities. That is a decrease of 25 municipalities since 2018. In the same way, we see that the number of enrolled children has decreased from 5,800 to 3,800. These are large differences. One needs to find out why.
In my municipality, Hudiksvall, I have over the past year witnessed two groundbreakings for the establishment of completely new preschools, both of which will include "nattis" (overnight care). Nattis is an important activity to give more single parents the opportunity to enter the workforce, while at the same time giving many industries a greater opportunity to recruit employees. And we know that many single parents are women who take a greater responsibility for children and families.
I hope that Equality Minister Paulina Brandberg in the government highlights the need for more childcare places during inconvenient working hours so that more single parents can say yes to work in the future.
Johanna Haraldsson (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you for the answers, Minister! I thought I would mention something about the actually very big issue that is part of this interpellation debate but which perhaps has not been talked about so much so far. It is the working environment.
Systematic and preventive work on the work environment is the foundation of a good work environment, the minister says in his response. I can only agree. But for the work environment to become as good as possible, it requires knowledge, good conditions, and opportunities for safety representatives to push for healthier workplaces. I am convinced that the government needs to take initiatives that strengthen safety representatives in their important work at both regional and local levels - it is one of the most important ways to improve the work environment at all our workplaces.
It is absolutely crucial that the authorities and the local civil defense organizations have sufficient powers, influence, and resources for their important and often life-saving work.
The Minister also highlights in his answer the previous Social Democratic government's work environment strategy as an important tool for achieving the goal within labor market policy.
As a Social Democrat, I naturally agree, but I would like to ask the Minister what in that strategy is most important and most decisive for improving the working environment, especially in female-dominated sectors.
Statsrådet Paulina Brandberg (L)
Madam Speaker! Many important issues are raised in the debate within this multifaceted area.
The government will attack all the areas that must be attacked so that we can achieve a more equal working life. To begin with, we will work very hard to get more women into the labor market. We know that among those who today stand furthest from the labor market is a very high proportion of foreign-born women. I am proud that the government, in its budget, makes a special investment in the organization of women and girls in vulnerable areas, an investment that I believe is very important to increase integration and bring these women and girls closer to society and the working life. This is, of course, the absolutely most important measure both for women to feel well and for them to have a more equal economy.
Of course, men and women should have the same opportunities. Once you enter the labor market, all professions should be open to both men and women. That is what I have touched upon a bit today, that we must analyze. What is it that makes men and women make different choices both when it comes to education and professions? Does some shift need to occur? There are authorities that work with those types of analyses, and I look forward to taking part in this to see what measures are expected to be proposed.
Then we have the measures for men and women who are in the labor market. The work environment issue is a very important issue. Today we see that most working women in Sweden work within the public sector, where care for people is in focus. These welfare jobs are overrepresented when it comes to sick leaves due to stress-related ill health. We know from the Swedish Work Environment Authority's inspection effort 2017-2019 within elderly care that nearly nine out of ten of the inspected workplaces have work environment deficiencies, primarily when it comes to the basic systematic work environment management. Here there are deficiencies that it is very important to address.
So we have the wage issue. There I received a question about how the government plans to work with the parties. The Mediation Institute is one of the agencies that I have to deal with, and they carry out very important work when it comes to precisely mapping wage differences so that differences within wages can be leveled out.
The interpellator and the debaters have pointed out that wage differences arise after children. There we see that the gaps increase, and we must, as said, also look at what measures can be taken to facilitate a combined work and family life. There, the structures are such today that it hits women harder, precisely because women take a greater responsibility for the unpaid domestic work.
There are, therefore, many areas that the government will work on and develop solutions for, and I look forward to driving this work very hard during the mandate period.
Sofia Amloh (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister, for the contributions in this debate! As we began with and as we continue to say, it becomes even clearer how important this is. I look forward to many of the parts that are to be developed and the ambitions that exist.
Equality is only mentioned a few times in the entire Palace Agreement. It is clear here today that concrete reforms are missing. There are many sweeping descriptions with explanations that one is to come up with policies.
I do not doubt that the Minister has high ambitions and thinks that this is important. But credibility lies in actions, what one manages to achieve, and how it is reflected in reality.
Politics is about will, and the new Minister for Equality, Madam Speaker, demonstrates here in the chamber that the lack of politics is palpable. I am very concerned, because we know that the most resistant party when it comes to equality is the Sverigedemokraterna, and that is the government's entire governing base. We need a progressive equality policy where we do not continue to fall victim to harmful gender norms, which is the answer to many of the questions that the Minister shall analyze.
We Social Democrats will every day of the week extend a hand for constructive conversations and cooperation so that Sweden can become a more equal society where the economic gaps are closed and where all people have a job or a meaningful and secure occupation to go to.
I look forward to having these conversations with the Minister in the future.
Statsrådet Paulina Brandberg (L)
Madam Speaker! In the so-called Tidö Agreement that the government has entered into with the Sverigedemokraterna, there are several points that show what policy the government will pursue. This is not an exhaustive list of what policy the government will pursue during the mandate period.
As I have been involved in during this debate, the government will look at these important issues and actively work to find solutions. Once we have developed proposals regarding this, there is absolutely no obstacle for the Social Democrats to support the proposals if they want to stand behind them. Whether they are included in the Tidö Agreement or not is therefore not decisive for whether they will be able to become a reality or not.
I would like to thank the interpellator and the debaters for this debate regarding a very important issue, and I hope to have the opportunity to continue the conversation regarding these issues.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.