Now the so-called marker is to be set. On March 31, the old agreements will expire on large parts of the Swedish labor market. The industrial parties, those who usually set the marker – the norm for wage increases for the entire labor market – are approaching a more intense phase to make it clear by then.
On Thursday, trade unions and employers in the industry will receive a first bid from the mediators (the impartial chairmen) with numerical wage increases. A response is to be submitted the following day.
The trade unions have demanded a 4.2 percent wage increase in a one-year agreement. Too high, the employers have responded.
It is hardly likely that both parties will say yes already on Friday. Typically, the mediators make a bid that is too low for the trade unions the first time, which is then spiced up in a new "final bid" a week or so later.
But it's not just the size of the wage increases that's at stake. The question of shortening working hours has emerged as a major issue in this wage movement.
The trade unions want to continue to shorten working hours through agreements, but the employers have clearly dug in their heels because they are worried that politicians might come up with legislative proposals for shorter working hours in the event of a shift in power in 2026.
