Why Working Conditions are Better in Sweden than the U.S.

Dan MacLeod

[Condensed version of the monograph from Working Life in Sweden, Series No. 28. New York: Swedish Information Services, 1984]

Almost anybody who has spent any time in Swedish industry notices that working conditions are better than in the U.S. The technical innovations that one sees in Swedish workplaces, the educational materials and programs, the research on the work life, and the genuine interest which many Swedish people take in the work environment are all remarkable.

You cannot help but wonder why it is that Sweden has taken such a leading role, especially given its small size (roughly the population of Minnesota and Wisconsin put together). This article seeks to provide a socio-economic background to answer this question. The reasons are followed in the very elements of the Swedish system — strong and progressive unions, sophisticated industrial relations, programs for full employment, and policies that support moderate, efficient industry.

Strong, Efficient Unions

The high level of unionization is the key factor in explaining the Swedish system. Currently, over 90 percent of the blue-collar workforce is unionized, over 70 percent of Swedish white-collar workers, and about 70 percent of supervisors are unionized. These figures are among the highest in the world and considerably higher than the U.S., where only about 14 percent of all workers belong to unions.

The labor movement provides the impetus for much of what happens in Sweden. It was the force at the turn of the century that brought social reforms that changed a backward country into modern, progressive democracy. Organized labor has been the backbone of the Swedish Social Democratic party, which has dominated Swedish politics for the past 65 years and which has shaped much of modern Swedish society. The labor movement negotiates nationwide contracts that have the impact of legislation. The unions run a network of schools and study circles, they own mass circulation newspapers, and they conduct countless programs that directly influence the society. The Swedish labor movement clearly has achieved a pre-eminence found in few other countries.

Moreover, the unions have uses power responsibly, as Swedish business leaders often agree. In particular, Swedish unions have traditionally urged and supported the modernization of industry, the use of advanced technology, and the improvement of efficiency at work. The unions themselves are efficiently run and well-organized.

The emphasis in Sweden working conditions flows from the setting. Swedish unions have place priority on improving the work environment and have initiated widespread programs to achieve that goal. Moreover, social and economic programs developed by the labor movement decades ago have had indirect, but powerful influence on workplace conditions.

With this type of foundation, there is a well-developed structure to raise ergonomics issues in each workplace and to disseminate background information and solutions.

Sophisticated Industrial Relations

Employers are also well organized in Sweden, in part as a response to the labor movement. Nearly all private firms belong to the Swedish Federation of Employers, a tightly organized group with the ability to impose decisions on its members, either through its bylaws or through the union contracts it negotiates.

The Federation of Employers meets annually with the Federation of Labor to negotiate a central contract that sets pay increases and other key matters that cover the bulk of the Swedish workforce. Subsequent negotiations on an industry level, and then in individual workplaces, implement these central agreements and provide flexibility.

For example, unions and employers negotiated procedures on how to implement the Swedish Work Environment Act. Similarly, joint labor-management groups negotiated methods to conduct systematic health and safety education and to develop comprehensive training materials. In the United States, no equivalent structure exists where such nationwide agreements between management and labor can be reached.

This structure provides an unusual advantage over the U.S. Swedish employers and unions are able to discuss and resolve problems that in the United States are beyond anyone’s control. There is enforcement for a national policy down to the local level, but also flexibility to accommodate the special needs of each individual workplace.

It should be emphasized that much of this occurs privately between employers and unions without government involvement. In United States, without this structure, government is much more often involved, typically by federal policymakers who attempt to develop regulations that fit every circumstance, an impossible task in most circumstances.

The system provides flexibility in enforcement of regulations. The national Federation of Employers and the Federation of Labor agree on broad, country-wide policies.  Then, meetings between management and labor in each industry adapt the policy to fit its particularies.  Finally, the managers and union at each workplace take into account their own circumstances to implement and enforce the policy.  In contrast, in the U.S., federal and state governments are face with the impossible task of writing one-size-fits-all regulations.

One should note that organization is made easier in Sweden because of its size. However, small size is not the determining factor. Other countries in the world (as well as states and regions within the U.S.) are equally small, but do not have the same high level of organization.

Economic Policy for Full Employment

The fundamental economic policy in the Swedish system for 65 years has been full employment, a factor that cannot be overstated in its importance for improving the work environment. Because of full employment, employers must improve conditions simply in order to attract workers.

Specifically, in the early 1970s unemployment hovered around one percent, pushing Swedish industry to start implementing ergonomics improvements as part of the effort to attract workers.

The Social Democratic Government

The Social Democratic Party (its official name is the Social Democratic Workers’ Party) was elected to office in 1932 and has been almost continuously re-elected ever since. During its long period in office, the Social Democratic Party was able to methodically enact a rather consistent set of programs and reforms to strengthen the economic position and rights of the Swedish workforce. Sweden was transformed in the process from a poor country into one of the most prosperous in the world.

The government has maintained an orientation sympathetic towards measures to improve the status of employees, including occupational health and safety and ergonomics. However, it should be emphasized that this effect is mostly indirect, since the government’s role is low-key. As in nearly all other matters of industrial relations, the government takes a rather laissez-faire attitude and leaves primary activities to joint labor-management action. One effect that is almost absent in the U.S. is that the concerns of work are often national political issues.

Economic Policies for Continuous Improvement of Industry

For many Americans, a surprising aspect of Swedish economic policy is the support given to private industry. The country has a legacy of gifted engineers, inventors, and entrepreneurs, many of whom are best described as Swedish equivalents of Henry Ford.

Swedish industry is privately owned and subject to market forces nearly to the same extent as in the U.S. In contrast to other European countries, there has never been any ambition in Sweden to nationalize industry or attempt grand scale economic planning.

Particular attention is given to policies that encourage the flow of capital to companies for continuous modernization. For example, corporate income taxes are low and the opportunities to write off capital investment are many. Equipment and buildings can be depreciated more quickly than in the U.S., sometimes in advance of purchase. In conjunction with the high personal income and capital gains taxes, an incentive for capital reinvestment is created.

The background for this political support given to industry is that Sweden is a small country dependent on exports for survival. To compete in the international market, while paying high wages and social benefits, Sweden must have the most efficient industry possible. Ergonomics has been seen as a part of that effort.

Legislation

During the 1970s a series of labor reforms were adopted by the Swedish Parliament with the goal of providing employees and unions more participation in workplace decision-making. One of these laws was the Work Environment Act of 1977. A brief review of this legislation reveals some basic differences from the American OSHA.

• The Swedish law refers to the concept of "the work environment" rather than merely to "occupational safety and health" as does OSHA. The legislation is thus more far-reaching in that it includes problems of stress, monotony, and the organization of work as part of its mandate.
• The Swedish law created a system of government inspectors to enforce written regulations as did the American OSHA legislation in 1970. However, the emphasis has been on massive educational programs and union involvement rather than citations.
• Unlike OSHA, the Swedish law was clearly designed to give workers more say in their jobs. In the words of the statute, "work should be arranged so that the worker or can influence his or her work situation."
• To achieve these goals, the law requires the development of trade union safety representatives, something which is absent in the American legislation. The end result in Sweden has been the creation of a virtual army of union safety representatives.

These factors have created a growth market for industry, most easily seen with ergonomic products.. In the process of developing solutions for Swedish industry, products were developed suitable for export. Many small entrepreneurs in particular saw ergonomics as a good growth market.

Dan is of Swedish heritage, spent a year of high school in Sweden, and speaks fluent Swedish.