Response to interpellation 2025/26:537 on the situation of young people in the Swedish labor market

Arbetsmarknadsminister och vikarierande klimat- och miljöministern Johan Britz (L)

Madam Speaker! Adrian Magnusson has asked me how I view the situation for young people in the Swedish labor market today and whether I and the government are considering any measures to improve the employment situation for young people.

I would first like to thank Adrian Magnusson for the question. The Government takes questions about young people's working lives and work environment very seriously. A job is not only of importance for every person's economy. For most people, the value in a job means that one contributes to society, has access to social interaction, and has a sense of purpose.

That young people get a good start in working life is important for their future professional lives. It is therefore positive that a large proportion of the employed young people between 16 and 29 years old – more than eight out of ten – are, on the whole, very or quite satisfied with their work. This follows from Arbetsmiljöverket's latest survey of the working environment and is largely in line with other age groups.

In the Swedish labor market model, the labor market parties take primary responsibility for the working conditions and are responsible for wage formation in the labor market. The employer is, according to the occupational environment legislation, responsible for the employees' working environment. When one is young and enters the working life, it is extra important to receive a good introduction at the workplace to avoid accidents and incidents and to gain an understanding of what applies at the workplace.

Young people are unfortunately extra vulnerable to certain risks in working life. Young men aged 16–24 are the group with the highest proportion of work accidents with sick leave. Young women are most exposed to threats and violence and offensive treatment at work. One in four employed women aged 16–29 states that they have been subjected to threats or violence at least once during the last year. It is, of course, completely unacceptable.

The Government, through the regulatory letter for 2025, tasked the then Agency for Work Environment Knowledge with producing and disseminating knowledge on young people's work environment, with a focus on the connection between, on the one hand, work environment risks and health-promoting factors and, on the other hand, young people's health, well-being, and safety in the workplace (A2025/00953). The assignment was reported in December 2025 (A2025/01251) and is a valuable knowledge base that has been considered, among other things, in the preparation of the Government's work environment strategy for 2026–2031, which was recently submitted to the Riksdag. The Government intends to continue to monitor the situation of young people in the Swedish labor market.

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

Adrian Magnusson (S)

Madam Speaker! I take the opportunity to answer the latest question I received. The Social Democrats believe that the parties should resolve the working hours issue. The problem right now is that Svenskt Näringsliv refuses to come to the negotiating table after LO submitted a request for negotiations, but the Minister for Employment has surely former colleagues at Svenskt Näringsliv whom he can contact and ask to come to the negotiating table.

To return to this interpellation debate, I would like to thank the Minister for Employment for the answer.

The interpellation is based on several of the reports that have emerged regarding how young people are faring in workplaces across Sweden. There are large café chains where reports have been made of solitary work, threats, harassment, and great vulnerability. There are large retail chains where reports have been made of the exploitation of young interns and delayed wage payments. These are work situations that I believe and hope many older workers would not have accepted, but which some unfortunately seem to think are perfectly reasonable for young workers to accept.

That this occurs in the Swedish labor market is not actually so strange. We have a high youth unemployment which means that the jobs one manages to get, of course, become important to hold onto. Poor working conditions then become something one has to accept; one is simply happy to have gotten a job and an income. A job and an income are often the basis for other things in life, such as being able to get a rental contract for a home, regardless of whether it is first-hand, second-hand, or third-hand.

Madam Speaker! In his answer, the Minister does not address the question of employment more generally. We know that there are more insecure employment conditions for young people, where fixed-term contracts, hourly employment, and zero-hour contracts are the rule rather than the exception. These are typical examples of things that make it even harder to obtain, for example, a home.

It is not only the work environment itself that can be more difficult for many young people across Sweden, but they also have poorer employment conditions, which makes it harder for them to start a life of their own. The Prime Minister can stand here in the Speaker's chair of the Riksdag and talk as much as he wants about more people getting to live in their own house; it still cannot happen if, as a young person, one cannot get a bank loan.

Madam Speaker! Today, students in my hometown Ystad are stepping out onto the stairs from Österportskolan. I hope that many of them get a job with good conditions, but I know that many of them unfortunately will not get it, both boys and girls.

I am pleased that the government again highlights the parties in the labor market in its response. To ensure a stronger social partner model, more people need to become members of employer organizations and trade unions. More collective agreements need to be signed. What is the government and the minister doing to promote the social partner model that the minister himself highlights in this interpellation debate but also in other contexts, for example in the previous interpellation debate?

The Minister also highlighted the assignment reported in December 2025 by the now dissolved Agency for Occupational Health Knowledge. There are some glimmers of hope and things that are very good – I think one should be honest and say that. Many young people, for example, experience good managerial support, which pleases me.

There are also a number of things that are of concern and which the minister himself has raised: Young men run a greater risk of being affected by work accidents. Young girls are more often exposed to threats and harassment. Across the group of young workers, there are poorer opportunities for influence over the work. Inconvenient working hours also occur more often than for older employees.

The authority's report arrived in December 2025. One of its assignments was to spread knowledge about the work situation for young people. I have not seen very much of that, and since then, several of the things that I raised in the interpellation have escalated. The Minister highlighted the government's work environment strategy at the end of his answer, which will not be addressed by this Riksdag but by the next.

The Minister is welcome to elaborate on in what way the working situation of young people is taken into account in the new work environment strategy and if there are any further measures being considered. It is obviously good to have a knowledge base, but several of the things were perhaps to some extent already known. Measures were needed for increased organization and sharper and more tools for Arbetsmiljöverket or regional safety representatives to maintain the work environment for young people, to mention a few examples.

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

Arbetsmarknadsminister och vikarierande klimat- och miljöministern Johan Britz (L)

Madam Speaker! Adrian Magnusson often stands here and praises the Swedish model of cooperation. It is very pleasant, but the problem with the proposals on shortening working hours that the Social Democrats have put forward is that there is a latent threat of legislation.

I will qualify my question a little bit: What do the Social Democrats do if the parties do not reach an agreement on the type of broad reduction in working hours that the Social Democrats themselves have proposed? The parties discuss reduction in working hours in every collective bargaining round – both Adrian Magnusson and I know that. Wages and working hours are two sides of the same coin, one could say.

The parts model cannot be a buffet where one says: If you take responsibility for these issues in the way we want, it is okay, but if you land on something else or do not reach an agreement, we will step in with legislation.

Adrian Magnusson asked me what I do to strengthen the Swedish model of industrial relations. The best thing we can do is to leave the parties in peace and let them fulfill their important mission.

Well, we may be able to return to that question here or in some other context, but this is very important for Swedish competitiveness and for us to have order and clarity on the Swedish labor market.

The work environment strategy was mentioned, and how one has it at work is, of course, a central work environment issue. The social environment is just as important as the physical work environment at work. Deficiencies, for example harassment and sexual harassment, can lead to sick leave. In addition to the consequences for the affected individuals, it affects the supply of skills and, in the long run, the entire economy.

In light of the occupational environment risks that young people can be exposed to, which I mentioned initially, the strategy's sub-objective "A safe working life" is important. Arbetsmiljöverket has been tasked with responsibility for a national coordination function to implement the government's occupational environment strategy.

Arbetsmiljöverket shall, within the framework of the assignment and in cooperation with participating authorities, labor market partners and other relevant parties, formulate priorities for measures deemed to contribute to the strategy's sub-goals and target images.

In connection with the work environment strategy, Arbetsmiljöverket has been tasked to take further measures to prevent fatal work accidents and other serious work accidents. That work shall contribute to safer workplaces, also for young people.

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

Adrian Magnusson (S)

Madam Speaker! I do not need to be lectured by a liberal Minister for Employment on the Swedish labor market model. I have actually several times questioned whether his predecessors in the position have understood what the Swedish labor market model is.

Now, the Minister for Employment himself has worked for Svenskt Näringsliv, so he obviously understands how the model works. But I have several times in this chamber been very astonished and really wondered whether his two predecessors in the position during those four years have understood how the Swedish labor market model works.

I refer to our congress decision on the issue of working hours. The Riksdag's power of oversight does not function in such a way that it is the minister who should question the Member of Parliament, but it is the Riksdag that holds the government accountable.

I return to the subject of this interpellation, namely the situation of young people in the Swedish labor market.

We have a situation in large parts of the world, even in Sweden although perhaps not as clearly, where young people are very worried about the future. One sees how AI is being rolled out to a large extent and threatens to take away jobs for young people. It is becoming increasingly difficult to get a home. It is becoming harder to make everyday life work. We see this, among other things, in that the birth rate is decreasing in Sweden and in large parts of the Western world. We see an ever-increasing worry and anxiety that characterizes the everyday lives of young people. I experience it myself in the conversations I have with young people when they are here in the Riksdag but also at home in Skåne.

Many of the issues that we have raised here are issues that hit young people particularly hard.

We see higher sickness absence for women. There are many young women who choose to go to work even though they are sick. It may be that they are in a workplace where there is solitary work. In that case, the consequences become very large if one does not come.

We see a fairly large exhaustion, physical and mental, and a good deal of work-related illnesses affecting young people in the working life.

We also see, as I have pointed out several times, that young men suffer from work-related accidents.

These are issues that we need to address. It cannot be that young people should be worried about not getting a job with the high youth unemployment we have in Sweden and then, when they do get a job, also have to experience that their working life, work environment and work situation is as bad as it is in some cases.

There were quite a few other issues in this interpellation that one could touch upon but which the minister has not touched upon yet. He may do so in some future statement.

We see, for example, that more and more employees – I would say that young people are a particularly vulnerable group – have their privacy at the workplace increasingly questioned. One is monitored, for example. One is simply monitored at work and questioned when, for example, one does not work fast enough, which can be identified with many of these tools.

This is also dangerous in the sense that it risks creating a distorted picture of what working life should be like. If, in one's first job, one experiences things such as physical and mental exhaustion and has one's integrity questioned in the workplace, then that needs to be addressed. Otherwise, we could end up with a situation in Sweden where the generation entering the workforce today, next year, and for a long time to come believes that working life should be characterized by these types of things.

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

Arbetsmarknadsminister och vikarierande klimat- och miljöministern Johan Britz (L)

Madam Speaker! Let us really not get stuck in discussions about the Swedish model of collective bargaining!

I still want to reserve the right to express a certain concern regarding the line that I perceive the Social Democrats have taken concerning the process of shortening working hours in Sweden. But it was in no way an ambition to lecture the member, not at all. It is a genuine question and a genuine concern. But we can have that discussion at another time.

Regarding the monitoring of employees, I want to highlight that the new technology makes it possible for employers to monitor and control employees to a greater extent today than has been the case previously. However, employers are still obliged to make the relevant balancing of interests and follow the regulations that apply to such situations. And according to current regulations, the employer may not perform any controls whatsoever. For example, monitoring measures involving the processing of personal data must be proportionate and purposeful and be based on a legal basis according to the EU's data protection regulation, i.e., GDPR. Furthermore, there are requirements for the employer to provide information to employees regarding the personal data processing that may take place in the workplace. Video surveillance of employees may be permitted under certain specific conditions, but I want to emphasize that strong reasons are required for it to be permitted.

I think it is important that we ensure that everyone in the Swedish labor market understands their rights. In the area that the member raises, surveillance, it can be particularly difficult. Here, the parties in the labor market, the employer organizations but perhaps most of all the trade unions, also have an extremely important role to play.

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

Adrian Magnusson (S)

Madam Speaker! In the report that the Minister for Employment himself highlighted, there are clear signs that what young people experience in their work situation today harms job satisfaction. This applies broadly across the group of young wage earners, workers, and it applies to both men and women.

This is worrying and something that needs to be addressed. Given the development we are seeing, not least the technological development that we have touched upon slightly in the debate here today, I believe that these questions will become increasingly relevant.

Given the world we live in, where more and more people feel anxiety and perhaps in some cases even hopelessness regarding the future, it is also important that we address these types of questions – especially when they come from the generation that is just now entering the workforce, from young people. It cannot be the intention that young people in Sweden should experience that the first job, which can be very difficult to obtain given the high youth unemployment we have in Sweden, should also be characterized by such a poor work environment and work situation that even their job satisfaction is seriously damaged.

Just as was given as a mandate to the Agency for Work Environment Knowledge, health-promoting factors in working life need to be considered more. More needs to be done to promote the working situation for young people all over Sweden. I sincerely hope that Arbetsmiljöverket and trade union representatives across the country are given the tools to do so.

My personal view is that we should ensure that more people engage in trade unions. There, we as legislators and the government should do what we can. We should, through words and, to the extent we can, action, ensure that more sign collective agreements and also become members of employer organizations. If we are to truly stand up for the Swedish labor market model, Madam Speaker, we need to ensure that it covers more people.

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

Arbetsmarknadsminister och vikarierande klimat- och miljöministern Johan Britz (L)

Madam Speaker! Once again, thank you, Adrian Magnusson, for this important discussion! For the most part, I agree with everything the member stated in his latest contribution.

Let us also be clear that it is always the employer who, according to the work environment legislation, has the primary responsibility for the employees' work environment.

The Swedish Work Environment Authority has the responsibility for supervision of the work environment legislation. During the past year, the Swedish Work Environment Authority had a special focus on inspections of industries where young people between 18 and 24 years of age commonly work. This concerns industries such as hotels, campsites and hostels, retail and wholesale, warehouses and restaurants, fast-food outlets and cafés.

Such a supervisory effort contributes to alerting the employers that preventive work is central and that they have a responsibility to reduce risks for accidents and incidents. It also means that the employers' knowledge of their work environment responsibility increases.

As part of the government mandate to the Swedish Work Environment Authority that I mentioned earlier, the authority put together a campaign called Arbetsmiljömannen, which contains short, informative films to make young workers aware of what the work environment is. The campaign had over 400,000 views in December last year.

Let me finally point out that in the Swedish model, the parties in the labor market have great responsibility for the working conditions. They also have an important role in contributing to a good entry into working life for young people.

The interpellations debate was hereby concluded.

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