Unemployment

The following articles have been tagged with "Unemployment":

Surprise dip in Sweden's unemployment rate

Business & Money: 19 Nov 09
Unemployment in Sweden shrunk unexpectedly in October, dropping to 8.1 percent of the workforce, according to new statistics. Nevertheless, one in four Swedes under age 25 remain out of work. READ »

Tanya endures six-month wait for jobless benefits

Society: 17 Nov 09
As jobs in Sweden continue to disappear, the country’s unemployment insurance funds have been struggling to keep up with jobless claims, forcing many to wait more than six months before receiving their benefits. READ »

Rate concerns shake up Swedish housing market

Business & Money: 12 Nov 09
Amid growing worries about a bubble in the Swedish housing market, warnings about future interest rate hikes appear to have caused a slowdown in rising home prices. READ »

Borg 'more optimistic' about Swedish economy

Business & Money: 9 Nov 09
The Swedish economy is set to return to growth next year, but unemployment will remain high, according to a new forecast from finance minister Anders Borg. READ »

'I won’t let my country be taken over by xenophobes'

Analysis & Opinion: 4 Nov 09
Curiosity is the most effective weapon against xenophobia, writes journalist and head of think tank FORES Martin Ådahl, as a comment on the Sweden Democrats’ future role in Swedish politics. READ »

Employers concerned by union pay raise demands

Business & Money: 2 Nov 09
Sweden’s unions announced demands on Monday that workers in the manufacturing sector receive a 2.6 percent wage increase, much to the dismay of leading employers' groups. READ »

Housing prices surge despite money worries

Society: 13 Oct 09
Housing prices in Sweden have regained their momentum after last autumn's tumble despite concerns over interest rate developments and rising unemployment. READ »

Immigrants fuel upswing in company start ups

Business & Money: 9 Oct 09
Foreign-born residents of Sweden are helping to boost the booming figures of new business start ups across the country in recent years, a new report indicates. READ »

Payment problems plague more Swedish homeowners

Business & Money: 5 Oct 09
Despite record-low interest rates, an increasing number of Swedish homeowners are having trouble paying their debts, according to a new study. READ »

Budget bill sees Sweden shedding more jobs

Business & Money: 21 Sep 09
Sweden's unemployment will climb above 11 percent, according to the 2010 budget bill presented by the government to the Riksdag on Monday, requiring measures focused on job creation and jump-starting growth. READ »

Sweden in new round of cut taxes to boost employment

Politics: 19 Sep 09
A new measure to tackle Sweden's rising rate of unemployment has been proposed by the Swedish government, with tax cuts of 10 billion kronor ($1.4 billion) hoped to stimulate the job market. READ »

Swedish companies still struggling for funding

Business & Money: 18 Sep 09
Swedish companies are still finding it hard to get funding on the financial markets, despite signs of economic recovery, the Riksbank's deputy governor has said. READ »

New figures show slowdown in Sweden's rising unemployment

Business & Money: 11 Sep 09
The pace of layoff announcements has leveled off, signaling a clear break with the country’s recent trend of rapidly increasing joblessness, according to the National Public Employment Agency. READ »

Swedish economy bounces back to growth

National: 11 Sep 09
Sweden’s economy returned to growth in the second quarter, ending a year of contraction and indicating that the worst of the country’s recession may be over. READ »

Sweden earmarks ten billion kronor for regions

Politics: 7 Sep 09
The government has revealed it is to set aside 10 billion kronor ($1.4 billion) for core welfare services in Sweden's regions and municipalities in the forthcoming autumn budget. READ »

Sweden pledges billions to tackle sick leave lists

Business & Money: 4 Sep 09
The Swedish government has announced the allocation of 17 billion kronor ($2.36 billion) in the autumn budget for initiatives to prepare the long-term sick for the workplace. READ »

Swedish banks: Interest rates set to rise

Business & Money: 1 Sep 09
Two of Sweden's biggest banks, SEB and Nordea, have predicted that the Riksbank will raise its benchmark interest rate to 2 percent by the end of next year from its current level of 0.25 percent. READ »

Sweden allocates billions to fight unemployment

Business & Money: 26 Aug 09
The Swedish government has promised to find 8.4 billion kronor ($1.19 billion) to fund education and training measures designed to combat growing unemployment. READ »

Sweden's recovery gathering pace: Borg

Politics: 21 Aug 09
Sweden's government has revised its gloomy economic prognosis upwards, announcing on Friday that it expects the country's GDP to increase by 0.6 percent in 2010, before making greater strides towards a full recovery in 2011 and 2012. READ »

Unemployment hits 9.1 percent: report

Business & Money: 20 Aug 09
454,000 Swedes were registered as unemployed during the second quarter of 2009, new figures from Statistics Sweden show. READ »

Sweden coming out of recession: Riksbank

Business & Money: 18 Aug 09
"The deep recession has hit bottom", Sweden's deputy central bank governor Svante Öberg said in a speech made on Tuesday, although he also predicted that a full recovery would take several years. READ »

Fewer claiming benefits in Sweden: report

Society: 17 Aug 09
The number of people claiming benefits in Sweden declined for the fourth consecutive year in 2008, according to new figures. But the tide is about to turn, analysts warn. READ »

Child benefits must be raised: Sahlin

Politics: 16 Aug 09
Mona Sahlin, leader of the Swedish Social Democrats, has said child maintenance support benefit levels will be raised if there is a change of government next year. READ »

Youth unemployment doubles in Sweden

Business & Money: 14 Aug 09
Unemployment among young people in Sweden has doubled over the past 12 months, new figures show. READ »

Councils to cash in on autumn budget

Business & Money: 10 Aug 09
Local council finances, investments in welfare services and measures to counter unemployment are to be given priority in the autumn budget, according to Sweden's prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt. READ »

Early signs of recovery in Stockholm

Business & Money: 5 Aug 09
The wave of unemployment is expected to subside, business has picked up and the number of consulting jobs has increased in Stockholm, according to new figures from the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce READ »

Rapid rise in unemployment claims

Business & Money: 4 Aug 09
The number of people receiving unemployment assistance in Sweden in July was up 30 percent on the same month last year, new figures show. READ »

Norwegian employers prefer Swedes: survey

Society: 30 Jul 09
Norwegian employers specifically request Swedes when they are looking to employ new staff, according to a slew of Norwegian recruitment agencies. READ »

Swedish women keep working after 65 despite job cuts: study

Business & Money: 28 Jul 09
Despite recent job cuts in the wake of the financial crisis, there are almost twice the number of women over the age of 65 working in Sweden today than four years ago, new statistics published on Tuesday show. READ »

Investor sees profits bounce back

Business & Money: 14 Jul 09
Despite strong second-quarter profits at Investor, the CEO of the Swedish holding company said Tuesday he doesn’t expect the global economy to rebound quickly. READ »

Swedish jobless rate continues to climb

Business & Money: 10 Jul 09
Nearly a quarter of a million Swedes were registered as jobless at the end of June, an increase of nearly 75 percent compared with the same month last year. READ »

Renters in Sweden struggle to make ends meet

Society: 8 Jul 09
Sweden’s renters are having a tougher time meeting their monthly obligations, resulting in increased evictions as well as applications for housing assistance payments. READ »

More Swedes buying private insurance: report

Business & Money: 6 Jul 09
More and more Swedes are purchasing private insurance for income protection as a result of the economic crisis, a new study has shown. READ »

Borg bashes business group 'ideologues'

Politics: 3 Jul 09
Sweden’s finance minister Anders Borg lashed out at the country’s business community on Friday, calling Sweden’s main business group “ideological megaphones” who’ve shirked their responsibility during the economic crisis. READ »

Swedes' unpaid debts continue to pile up

Business & Money: 3 Jul 09
Swedes’ cumulative unpaid debts reached a new record of 62.2 billion kronor ($7.9 billion) in June, with Swedes at the higher end of the earnings scale finding it increasingly hard to pay their bills. READ »

EU's institutional woes could outshine Sweden’s priorities

Politics: 2 Jul 09
Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt did his best on Wednesday to deflect attention away from the continuing institutional uncertainty which threatens to overshadow Sweden’s six-month European Union presidency. READ »

Sweden urges EU states to tighten belts

Politics: 1 Jul 09
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt has said the country's EU presidency will push member states to curtail spending and work towards sustaining public finances across the union. READ »

Economic crisis and climate top Swedish EU priorities

Analysis & Opinion: 30 Jun 09
The global economic crisis, soaring unemployment in Europe and climate change top Sweden's agenda as it takes over the European Union six-month presidency in difficult conditions on Wednesday, writes AFP's Francois Campredon READ »

Liberals call for low wage apprenticeships

Politics: 29 Jun 09
Liberal Party leader Jan Björklund has proposed a new apprenticeship system for young people as a way to counteract youth unemployment in Sweden. READ »

What's on in Sweden: June 26 - July 2

Lifestyle: 24 Jun 09
What's on in Sweden: Bunny Wailer (JAM) and The Pet Shop Boys (UK) in Stockholm; heavy metal festival & A Camp in Gothenburg; Atmosphere (US) in Malmö. READ »

Swedish unemployment hits 9 percent

Business & Money: 18 Jun 09
With job losses continuing to mount in the mining, manufacturing and energy sectors, Sweden's unemployment rate rose to 9 percent in May, according to new figures from Statistics Sweden. READ »

Stockholm suburb ranked best place to live in Sweden

Society: 12 Jun 09
For the second year in a row, the municipality of Danderyd outside of Stockholm has been voted the best place in Sweden to live, according to a magazine’s annual ranking. READ »

Jobless rate to hit 11 percent: agency

Business & Money: 9 Jun 09
Sweden’s unemployment rate is expected climb to 11.3 percent in 2010, according to the latest forecast from the National Public Employment Agency. READ »

Economic crisis tops Sweden's EU presidency agenda

Analysis & Opinion: 5 Jun 09
Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and Minister of Finance Anders Borg outline Sweden's priorities for the upcoming EU presidency. READ »

Swedish unemployment stabilizes at 8.3 percent

Business & Money: 26 May 09
The number of unemployed in Sweden stabilized at 8.3 percent of the workforce in April with 403,000 out of work, according to a new report published on Tuesday. READ »

Business leaders demand pay freeze

Business & Money: 26 May 09
Swedish business leaders have demanded a pay freeze, lower pay for young people and more flexible employment regulations, warning union leaders not to inflate expectations before the 2010 pay talks. READ »

High lay-off notices 'a deliberate tactic'

Business & Money: 22 May 09
Swedish companies are serving redundancy notices in artificially high numbers as part of a tactic to circumvent employment protection laws, claims a chief analyst at the national job agency. READ »

Crisis and EU dominate party leader debate

Politics: 18 May 09
The financial crisis and its effects dominated the debate between the seven parliamentary party leaders on national Swedish television on Sunday evening. Party leaders would have liked more time to discuss the EU elections. READ »

Sweden urged to do more to combat crisis

Business & Money: 12 May 09
Sweden's centre-right government has been urged to do more to offset the effects of the global economic crisis, notably to combat soaring unemployment, a panel of economic experts said on Monday. READ »

Income protection for out-of-work teachers

National: 9 May 09
Teachers’ incomes are to be protected under a new insurance scheme set up by teachers’ unions following a wave of redundancy notices in schools across the country. READ »

Centre Party touts new Swedish labour model

Politics: 5 May 09
The Centre Party, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Maud Olofsson, has put itself on a collision course with Sweden's two largest parties by calling for an overhaul of the country's much vaunted labour market model. READ »

Sahlin promises assistance to pensioners

Politics: 2 May 09
Swedish Social Democratic Party leader Mona Sahlin promised to work for increased unemployment benefits in her May Day speech on Friday, particularly addressing the issues facing pensioners. READ »

Homeless single mothers: Child allowance counts towards rent

Analysis & Opinion: 26 Apr 09
Lynessa Hansson risks becoming homeless after a Stockholm public housing company ruled out her child allowance as a legitimate source of income, writes Elizabeth Dacey-Fondelius. Now the rental companies have seen the error of their ways. But for this single mother of two, the clock is still ticking. READ »

Swedish unemployment rises to 8.3 percent in March

National: 23 Apr 09
Sweden's unemployment rate climbed to 8.3 percent in March, the fifth consecutive monthly rise and up from 8.0 percent in February Statistics Sweden (SCB) said on Thursday. READ »

Sweden's Investor cuts losses

Business & Money: 15 Apr 09
Swedish holding company Investor reported net losses of 3.02 billion kronor ($368 million) for the first quarter on Wednesday. The firm's CEO forecast continued economic turbulence in 2009. READ »

Spring budget warns of tough times ahead

Business & Money: 15 Apr 09
The Swedish government will allocate funds to expand employment opportunities for the young and the unemployed in its spring budget as finance minister Anders Borg warns of tough times ahead. READ »

'Half a million jobless in 2010': agency

Business & Money: 7 Apr 09
Over 500,000 Swedes are set to be out of work in 2010, according to a new forecast from the National Public Employment Agency. READ »

Swedish football: A beginner’s guide to the Allsvenskan

Lifestyle: 2 Apr 09
With the Swedish football season kicking of this weekend, Nic Townsend separates the title hopefuls from the relegation woefuls in a team by team analysis of the Allsvenskan. READ »

Unpaid blogger risks losing unemployment benefits

Society: 2 Apr 09
A former Volvo worker in southern Sweden has been told to stop blogging for his local newspaper if he wants to retain his unemployment insurance. READ »

Borg forecasts mass unemployment

Business & Money: 1 Apr 09
Sweden's finance minister Anders Borg has predicted that the country's unemployment rate will hit 12 percent in 2011 as GDP plummets 4.2 percent in 2009. READ »

'Economic crisis as bad as the 1990s': report

Business & Money: 31 Mar 09
The Swedish economy will deteriorate sharply this year. GDP will drop by 3.9 percent and 250,000 jobs will disappear by the end of 2010, according to a new report published on Tuesday. READ »

Rosengård: Integration in the eye of the storm

Analysis & Opinion: 27 Mar 09
Malmö suburb Rosengård has come to symbolise Sweden's struggles with integration. AFP's Marc Preel examines a community grappling with its identity after a winter marred by rioting and clashes with the police. READ »

Swedish aid to help Zimbabwe fight cholera

Politics: 19 Mar 09
Sweden has agreed to provide 84 million kronor ($10.5 million) in humanitarian aid to Zimbabwe in part to help the country battle its ongoing cholera epidemic. READ »

Surprise jump in unemployment

Business & Money: 19 Mar 09
Sweden’s unemployment rate rose to 8 percent in February, much to the surprise of many analysts, who didn’t expect the economic crisis would hit the country’s labour market so hard and so fast. READ »

Birthplace matters in Swedish job market

Analysis & Opinion: 12 Mar 09
Foreign-born graduates of Swedish universities suffer discrimination in the Swedish labour market and are often under-paid and over-qualified, a new report shows. Action is demanded to meet the challenges of an ageing workforce. READ »

Investor boss gets big pay packet

Business & Money: 9 Mar 09
The chief executive of Investor, the holding company of the Wallenberg family, received a pay packet worth 15.4 million kronor for 2008, despite the company posting a loss of 37 billion kronor. READ »

'Taxes still too high in Sweden'

Analysis & Opinion: 3 Mar 09
Sweden's government needs to continue lowering taxes if the country is to get to grips with excessive public spending and an eroding work ethic, argues Nima Sanandaji. READ »

Sweden to shed 20,000 construction jobs

Business & Money: 25 Feb 09
Sweden is set to lose 20,000 jobs in the building sector in the coming year, according to a new forecast from the Swedish Construction Federation. READ »

Sweden's jobless rate climbs by 14 percent

Business & Money: 19 Feb 09
The unemployment rate in Sweden jumped up over 7 percent in January, according to new statistics released on Thursday. READ »

Banking on the new Swedish model

Analysis & Opinion: 18 Feb 09
Olle Wästberg, Director General of the Swedish Institute reveals some insights garnered from his inside track in the early 1990s to the bone-shaking Swedish banking crisis and its eventual resolution. READ »

'Tap the potential of immigrant entrepreneurs'

Analysis & Opinion: 3 Feb 09
Sweden could learn a lot from Canada and the UK when it comes to leveraging the power of entrepreneurship to help integrate immigrants, writes Nima Sanandaji of the Captus think tank. READ »

'Sweden ready for euro entry': report

Politics: 27 Jan 09
A new report indicates that economic arguments against euro entry are no longer valid and concludes that in the wake of the finance crisis, it is now time for Sweden to join. READ »

Unemployment insurance enrollment on the rise

Business & Money: 23 Jan 09
The number of Swedes enrolled in unemployment insurance programmes (a-kassa) jumped by 3,000 in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to new statistics. READ »

Men at 40 have highest incomes in Sweden: study

Business & Money: 22 Jan 09
Forty-year-old men are the top earners in Sweden, new statistics show. READ »

Borg sees second financial crisis ahead

Business & Money: 20 Jan 09
Finance Minister Anders Borg warned on Tuesday of the risk for a crisis in the real economy to come back and cause yet another financial crisis. READ »

Furious minister storms out of parliament

Politics: 16 Jan 09
Sweden's labour market minister Sven Otto Littorin left parliament in a rage on Friday following a heated verbal exchange with a member of the opposition. READ »

'Jobseekers' lying to employment agency

Society: 16 Jan 09
Many among Sweden’s growing ranks of unemployed are lying to the national employment agency about their efforts to look for new jobs in order to retain their unemployment benefits. READ »

Are you worried about losing your job in 2009?

Analysis & Opinion: 14 Jan 09
As a wave of layoffs descends on Sweden, we ask whether The Local's regular panelists are concerned about finding themselves unemployed. READ »

Debt agency calls for greater compassion

Business & Money: 5 Jan 09
Several civil servants have called for Sweden to take a more compassionate approach to people in debt. READ »

Swedish firms planning large layoffs in 2009

National: 4 Jan 09
After shedding tens of thousands of jobs in recent months, Sweden should prepare for a new wave of layoffs in 2009, a survey of some of the country's top business leaders showed on Saturday. READ »

Riksbank chief forecasts dire 2009

National: 31 Dec 08
The global financial crisis is set to continue to affect the Swedish economy in 2009, Riksbank chief Stefan Ingves said on Wednesday. Years of strong growth has put Sweden in a strong position to cope however. READ »

2008: The year in review

Lifestyle: 31 Dec 08
As 2008 draws to a close, The Local takes a look back at some of the stories that caught our attention over the last twelve months. READ »

Redundancies rocket in December

Business & Money: 22 Dec 08
A total of 14,773 people have so far been made redundant in Sweden in December, according to new figures from the public employment agency. READ »

Swedish households remain pessimistic

Business & Money: 22 Dec 08
With the state of the Swedish economy considerably weaker than normal, households remain pessimistic over their private finances and the nation's economy, a new report shows. READ »

Swedish job losses set to soar in 2009

Business & Money: 19 Dec 08
The global financial crisis is set to have a major effect on the real economy in Sweden next year, according to a new report from a government research institute. READ »

Is it time for Sweden to join the eurozone?

Analysis & Opinion: 18 Dec 08
With the Swedish currency foundering in a deepening economic crisis, Jonathan Ward wonders if Sweden should reconsider its decision to shun the euro. READ »

One third of jobless lack insurance

Business & Money: 17 Dec 08
Almost one third of people out of work in Sweden lack unemployment insurance and rely on dole payouts of a maximum 5,500 kronor ($715) per month after tax, according to new figures from the public employment agency. READ »

Sweden – a new melting pot?

Analysis & Opinion: 16 Dec 08
As Sweden opens its borders to a new wave of labour migration, the country is becoming more diverse than ever before, writes Olle Wästberg, director-general of the Swedish Institute. READ »

Swedish economic growth hits 30 year low

Business & Money: 16 Dec 08
Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg said on Tuesday that the country’s economic growth was its weakest in three decades as he announced that the government now forecasts the economy will contract by 0.8 percent next year. READ »

Swedes: hard workers or hardly working?

Analysis & Opinion: 15 Dec 08
Doug Lansky takes a look at how Swedish tradition, technology, sick leave, vacations, public holidays and a new management style mean many 'full-time' Swedish workers get 130 days off per year. READ »

Sweden to launch car industry aid package

Society: 11 Dec 08
The Swedish government announced plans on Thursday to launch a 28 billion kronor ($3.42 billion) aid package for the country's beleaguered car industry. READ »

Unemployment forecast to top 9 percent by 2010

Politics: 9 Dec 08
145,000 people are forecast to lose their jobs over the next two years, pushing unemployment up to 9 percent by 2010, according to a new forecast from the Swedish Public Employment Agency. READ »

Opposition parties to build coalition

Politics: 7 Dec 08
Sweden’s opposition political parties have announces plans to build a united coalition government following the 2010 Riksdag elections. READ »

Are Swedish taxes too high?

Analysis & Opinion: 3 Dec 08
Every week we ask a panel of readers for their views on a particular topic relating to life in Sweden. This week, we wonder whether Swedish taxes rock the panelists’ cradle or have them wishing for an early grave. READ »

Borg warns of looming recession in Sweden

Business & Money: 17 Nov 08
Sweden's finance minister Anders Borg warned on Monday that the country may be headed toward a recession, while also saying the government is considering other ways to get banks to join its state-sponsored lending programme. READ »