In Focus
From soot to sun – the long fight against occupational disease
Has the 250 years’ fight against occupational disease come to its end? Today’s risk factors are not soot, radon or asbestos, says the EU work safety agency. The top risk, is in fact ordinary sunlight.
First step towards a coalition for safety and health at work
Fresh global statistics from the ILO shows both workplace accidents and work-related disease with fatal consequences increased during the 2010s. This could explain why Finland’s September initiative to make good on all lofty declarations on improved working environments and health got such an enthusiastic welcome around the world.
“Only the labour market knows which skills are needed”
Swedish employers are in desperate need of people to fill positions within many different occupations. Meanwhile, more than 340,000 people are registered with the employment service. The problem is that the job seekers’ knowledge often does not match the needs of the employer.
Fitness industry seeks millennium-old skills – and knowledge of how to become bootylicious
More than four million Nordic citizens are members of gyms like Sats Elixia. As a result, the demand for skilled instructors is considerable. We joined one student of theology, one accountant and one brand expert in their spinning, yoga and shape classes.
How Sats Elixia works to secure the right competency
Competency is a moving target, since the knowledge needed to manage a job always changes. In the fitness and exercise industry this is doubly true. Not only does one trend replace another. Competency also often means knowing the right movements and how to make people move.
How do you motivate adult Danes to retrain?
The Danish adult and continuing education system is being reorganised in order to get more Danes to choose to take part in continuing training. One in three say they are not interested.
Older colleagues’ experience needed as the 80’s generation take over the Viking ferries
Viking Line is facing a real challenge. The largest age group onboard their Baltic Sea passenger ferries is 50 to 59 year olds. When they retire, a big chunk of competence disappears. The company has decided to treat this as a challenge and not a problem.
Restaurants break with old language norm – English makes an entrance
Finnish restaurateurs are worried about the lack of Finnish-speaking waiters. As a result, more and more restaurants now seek English-speaking staff. Meanwhile, trade unions sound a warning that many young people are leaving the trade because of low pay and a lack of workplace training opportunities.
The Nordic region wants more refugees in work
The Nordic countries are leading the way when it comes to the inclusion of refugees, says the OECD’s Thomas Liebig. He holds up the unique structural introduction programmes as one example. The problem is that not many find work after finishing the programme. Norway’s Minister of Labour Anniken Hauglie wants to improve the way the measure is targeted in order to get refugees into the labour market.
Polish immigrants in Norway – with only one foot in the labour market
Polish labour immigrants travelled to Norway rather than to Sweden or Denmark, which were closer, when Poland joined the EU in 2004. Most did not intend to stay, but after some years their families joined them in Norway. Because of short work contracts, the immigrants are in a kind of limbo. They have a job, but little prospect of promotion.
Refugee immigration not primarily about money
What do refugees cost? It is a concern for both proponents and opponents of welcoming refugees to a country. Yet research shows the challenge is more social than economic, where the major risk of alienation lies in the gap between those who have a job and those who do not.
What does a stint in jail mean for getting a job?
A new study compares employment of previous inmates in four Nordic countries up until five years after their release. The aim has been to see whether former inmates in certain countries are more successful in finding work, and whether this is a result of the work of the correctional services or labour market measures.
How Danish municipalities are creating meaningful inclusion
Danish municipalities are in the vanguard when jobs are created for people who are far removed from the labour market. Their experience shows all employees can benefit if the inclusion is done right.
Labour market inclusion more important than learning Finnish
Why should it take seven years for immigrants to get nothing more than low-paid work, when there are expensive labour market measures in place? When can they get a well-paid job in the private sector after just one year!
Three sharing economy companies show one size doesn't fit all
Uber and Airbnb have taken most of the limelight, but new platform companies are being developed all the time. Finn.no, Cool Company and Ework Group are three examples of Nordic companies using digital platforms to link customers with various types of services.
A Nordic model for fair platform economies
He has a vision for Nordic cooperation between the social partners in order to make labour market agreements part of the digital platforms which organise and allocate work. “We want to create a distinctly Nordic variation of the platform economy and make it easier for employers to be good employers,” says Fredrik Söderqvist from the Unionen trade union.
The sharing economy and its effect on the labour market
How large is the sharing economy in the Nordic region really? And how should it be defined? One thing about the sharing economy most agree on is that it can be defined in different ways depending on whether you belive working conditions, flexibility. or technology is the most important thing.
From poverty to dream holiday in Bali thanks to Airbnb
The sharing economy is thriving in Iceland. It has not had major consequences for the country’s labour market, and the development has happened on its own terms – driven by tourism. Icelanders share their houses and cars with tourists. Iceland’s tax authorities are now going to work together with Airbnb.
Disruption shakes the Nordic agreement model
The social partners in the Nordic region have to adapt the Nordic labour market model to fit the sharing economy, driverless forklifts and other new labour market trends. If they don’t, others will, a Danish expert warns. The Danish government and the social partners have approached the task by establishing a new body: “The Disruption Council”.
Nordic working environment authorities with different views on social dumping
Nordic countries must make comprehensive changes to their working environment policies in the face of new ways of working and more posted workers from the EU. Everyone seems to agree that working environment issues are getting increasingly important, yet there are major differences in how the different countries handle the challenges – not least when it comes to social dumping.
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