Arbetsmarknad och privatekonomi (the labour market and personal finances): our walkthrough of chapter 8 of UHR’s Sverige i fokus

Public and private sector

The labour market is divided into two parts. The public sector (offentlig sektor) is activities run by the state, the regions or the municipalities. It is paid for jointly with tax money. Teachers, healthcare staff, childcare workers, police officers and firefighters, for example, work there.

The private sector (privat sektor) consists of companies with private owners, for example shops, restaurants, factories and construction companies.

The labour market does not look the same everywhere. In the big cities there are many companies in different industries, for example retail and services.

Employers, employees and the union

There are two roles at a workplace. The employer (arbetsgivare) hires staff and pays wages. The employee (arbetstagare) does the work and can join a trade union (fackförbund).

A trade union is the employees’ shared voice towards the employer. The union negotiates pay and helps members if problems arise at work. Employers in turn have their own organisations, both for private companies and for public workplaces.

Unions and employers’ organisations (arbetsgivarorganisationer) are together called the social partners (arbetsmarknadens parter). It is they who agree on pay and conditions through negotiations. Politicians do not decide wages.

Collective agreements and laws

A collective agreement (kollektivavtal) is an agreement on pay and working conditions between the union and the employer side. The word kollektiv shows that the conditions apply to a whole group.

The agreement follows the workplace, not the individual person. It applies to everyone employed there, including those who are not union members.

Alongside the agreements there are laws that protect employees. Among other things they cover how long you may work, what the working environment must be like and how much holiday you are entitled to.

Tax and fees

An employee costs the employer more than the wage itself. On top of the wage, the employer pays fees to the state. The money goes to the staff’s pensions and sickness insurance.

Anyone who has earned money during the year must file a tax return (deklarera), that is, report their income to Skatteverket (the Swedish Tax Agency).

If you become unemployed or get into debt

The unemployment fund, A-kassan, is an economic association. A member who becomes unemployed can get money from it. To get compensation you must have worked to a sufficient extent over a period and be actively looking for a new job. The rules can change, so always check the current conditions.

The social insurances (socialförsäkringarna) are another form of security. Through them the state pays out money in particular situations, for example child benefit (barnbidrag) when you have children, sickness benefit (sjukpenning) when you are ill and a pension when you have stopped working.

Buying on credit (på kredit) is quick, but loans of that kind often have high interest and therefore become expensive. If debts are not paid, it is Kronofogdemyndigheten (the Enforcement Authority) that collects them. A person with very large debts can get help from the authority to sort out their finances. That help is called debt relief (skuldsanering).