Collective agreements are widespread in the Swedish labour market and largely regulate the relationship between employer and workers. Local collective agreements can also apply in your workplace, which complement the rules of the central collective agreement and offer better conditions, such as additional parental leave benefits, skills development or flexible hours. Find out what`s going on for you by talking to elected representatives of graduates in your workplace. Between 1956 and the late 1980s, the most important level of negotiation was at the national level, with activities covering the entire economy. But this era ended, and it was in 1983 that the first major break with this model in the metallurgical industry arrived. Normally, there are separate agreements for manual and non-manual workers. If you have questions about wages or holidays for seconded workers or the content of a collective agreement, please contact the organization below. The Swedish model of industrial relations, based on a traditionally strong social partnership between employers and trade unions, is different from that found elsewhere in the European Economic Area. Pay rates are in principle set without interference from the political establishment and the emphasis is on collective agreements negotiated by the organizations concerned.
But it is interesting to note that 2016 is proving to be a great year of collective bargaining. Some collective agreements refer to the general relationship between an employer or employer organisation and trade unions. These agreements generally address issues such as participation, negotiation procedures and the definition of common objectives related to future labour market developments and employers. Agreements are generally reached between federal employers` organizations and their central union counterparts at the federal level with the above themes. With regard to wages, the most important level of bargaining is the sectoral level, although there is still some coordination at the national level and a great deal of room for changes in the company and organisation. About 60 trade unions and 50 employers` organisations are involved in negotiations at this level. In addition to pay and working time, most elements of life in the workplace can be covered by collective bargaining. Some of them, such as the increase in sickness benefits, accident compensation or the level of pension above the old age pension and the state disability, are dealt with by negotiation at the sectoral level.