News — Nordic Labour Journal

Norwegian tripartite agreement on sick leave

(Mar 02, 2010) Norway's government and the social partners have reached a new agreement aimed at reducing sick leave. The agreement covers the next four years and prolongs the 2001 Inclusive Workplace Agreement.

Joint fight against long-term unemployment

(Feb 25, 2010) Getting the long-term unemployed back into work is hard. You need focus, determination, the will to try new things and good cooperation between companies, job centres and education, says Denmark's Minister of Labour Inger Støjberg. She is gathering inspiration for a new initiative against long-term unemployment.

"Myths muddle debate on sick leave"

(Feb 25, 2010) Björn Johnson is fighting what he calls the myth of Sweden's high levels of sick leave. The Malmo University researcher has just published 'The Fight Over Sick Leave', a book exploring why and when sick leave became defined as a social problem.

New rules for long-term sick leave in Sweden

(Jan 14, 2010) Swedish job centres face busy times as 16,000 people on long-term sick leave are transferred from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency to the Public Employment Service. From now on they should be offered individual help and advise to help them re-join working life. The move has been met with fierce criticism, forcing the government to back down on several points.

The need for a comprehensive youth policy

(Nov 25, 2009) Labour ministers want an overview of all measures targeted at youth across all policy areas in the Nordic countries.

Tailored and targeted measures to help young Danes

(Oct 26, 2009) Denmark is launching a tailored and targeted drive for 15 to 17 year-olds to get them into education or work. The Danish government plans to spend 1.25 billion Kroner (€170 million) over three years to see the plan through. But the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions says a threat to cut youth benefits is a slap in the face of the weakest families.

Work place health promotion - a double-edged sword

(Oct 26, 2009) Pedometers, weight clubs, gym memberships - more and more companies invest in their employees' health. For most the results are good. But work place health promotion can also create second-class workers, according to a new study from Umeå Universitet.

Finland's system of "job alternation" becomes permanent

(Sep 20, 2009) The popular Finnish system of "job alternation" will continue. The system proved so popular and efficient the government decided in September to draft a law to make it permanent.

The deaf TV editors

(Sep 20, 2009) In a crisis those on the peripheries of the labour market suffer the most. Who wants to invest in a deaf or deafblind when the future of the company hangs in the balance? ASVO in Bergen, Norway, does exactly that.

Knowledge bank to help young outsiders

(Sep 19, 2009) By 2013 the European Solidarity Foundation (ESF) will have funded 1,000 projects in Sweden alone aimed at young workers and those who fall outside the labour market. The resulting know-how is taken further by The Swedish National Board for Youth Affairs and the Employment Service with their project "Young Workers".

Class decides young adults' options

(Aug 15, 2009) Social background plays a major part when young adults consider their chances of fulfilling their professional dreams. Old structures go and the individual takes centre stage, forcing people to carry responsibility for their own success or failure. No matter where you work, the group matters less and less.

A new labour policy for the North

(May 01, 2008) Norway should completely open up its three northernmost counties to labour immigration from Russia. The government also wants to end restrictions on labour from Bulgaria and Romania earlier than planned.

New ideas for virtual job seeking

(May 01, 2008) After more than a decade with vacancy databanks on the Internet, it is hard to imagine a time when job searches were not made electronically. Information technology has widened the reach of the companies and multiplied the choice for the jobseekers. But has it improved the matching?

Spread of franchises weakens unions

(May 01, 2008) Nordic trade unions have been very active in the fight against social dumping of foreign labour. But little has been done to stop entire business sectors from adapting the franchise model - a model which pushes aside most union rights.

The Nordic region: defying economic theory

(May 01, 2007) The Nordic countries defy many of the traditional economic theories. Despite having large public sectors, strong unions, small wage differences, generous welfare states and high taxes, their economies have fared better than those of most countries.