prop · GX0334en · 2009-10-21 00:00:00 — Now more foreign-born people are working in the service sector which has not been as badly affected as manufacturing. foreign-born people have temporary employment and thus have a weaker attachment to the labour market than people born in . Efforts by the to improve the labour market situation for the foreign born primarily consist of general measures aimed at the unemployed or long-term unemployed in general. Special measures aimed at people born abroad are only justified during their initial period in when their needs may differ from those of other jobseekers. This refers in particular to knowledge of Swedish, a contact network and experience in the Swedish labour market. Measures targeted at newly arrived adults born abroad should be clearly focused on rapid in the labour market. In connection with the 2009 Budget , the Government presented a comprehensive integration strategy (Empowerment against Exclusion the Governments Strategy for Better Integration, skr. 2008/09:24). The main focus of the strategy is to increase labour supply and demand and improve matching between available labour and the needs of the labour market. Particular focus is put on newly arrived refugees and their close relatives' in the labour market. In 20082010 there is a programme to strengthen entrepreneurship among people with a foreign background. The initiatives are primarily directed at established entrepreneurs with a foreign background that want to get help developing and expanding their companies. At least 40 per cent of the participants are to be women. Of the 19 900 people employed in new start jobs in 2009, a third 6 500 people were born abroad. About two thirds of the people born abroad who are in new start jobs are men. Newly arrived immigrants are eligible for new start jobs. Step-in jobs are a special subsidised employment that newly arrived immigrants may be offered, together with Swedish language training. After a slow growth in the number of places, the terms for step-in job were changed as of 1 2008. The aim was to make it easier for newly arrived immigrants to get this kind of job. number of participants has subsequently increased and in 2009, 2 600 people, three quarters of whom were men, were employed in step- Under the job and development guarantee, long-term unemployed people looking for work are offered individually tailored activities to help them find a job as quickly as possible. referred to activities where they receive activity support. At the end of 2009, 55 000 people participated in the programme, 16 600 or 30 per cent of whom were born abroad. At that same time, 7 300 people participated in various forms of work experience placements. 3 200 or close to 44 per cent were born abroad. The participants, both those born in and those born abroad, include approximately as many women as men. people who have been unemployed for three months to the job guarantee for young people. The aim of the guarantee is to offer special initiatives to enable unemployed young people to get a job matching their job skills as quickly as possible or to begin or resume an education in the regular At the end of 2009, 33 300 young people participated in the programme, whereof 4 600 or 14 per cent were born There are slightly more men than women participating, both among the Swedish and the foreign born. The focus of the 's integration efforts in recent years has been newly arrived immigrants. This should be seen against the background of the Government's strategy for integration The percentage of foreign born among participants in various labour market programmes is about the same as the percentage of foreign born among the unemployed, although there are large differences between various programmes. a good job in reaching those born abroad. Men, however, participate in measures or have subsidised employment more often than women, even though unemployment is higher among women. It is not yet possible to get an overall picture of the results of these labour market initiatives for people born abroad. A special pilot project with consultations for newly arrived people in need of protection and their relatives is being implemented in three municipalities in 2009 and 2010. consultation gives the responsibility for drawing up an plan for newly arrived immigrants as soon as a permit is granted. The intention is that early information about where in there is a demand for the skills the newly arrived immigrant possesses will have more importance in the choice of a place The pilot project is to be evaluated by the Institute for Labour Market Policy Evaluation. With the aim of further improving opportunities to get skilled work, resources for supplementary university training for foreign university graduates have been increased substantially, beginning in 2009. training programmes are aimed, for example, at teachers, lawyers and health care professionals. The Government, in a special bill, Knowledge without Borders Higher Education in the Era of Globalisation 2008/09:175) has therefore presented proposals on a legally certain and effective track for recognising health care professionals' training from In the bill, the Government also presents proposals on how the assessment of foreign training should be coordinated and streamlined to facilitate labour market entry. State support for upper secondary and post-secondary vocational education for adults has increased substantially. The expansion in the number of study places is considered of great importance in enabling newly arrived adult immigrants to acquire or supplement a vocational education and training in . A special public authority, the for Higher Vocational Education, has been formed to coordinate post-secondary vocational training that does not consist of higher education programmes. The Authority has been given a special national responsibility for the validation of foreign post-secondary vocational education and training. Efforts have also been made to improve the quality of Swedish for Immigrants (SFI), basic Swedish language training for adults whose mother tongue is not Swedish. Teachers' skills are to be improved and national final exams are being introduced. The objectives of the instruction have also been clarified. A pilot project with performance- based incentive compensation in SFI (the SFI bonus) has been introduced to encourage a more rapid throughput. To clarify municipal and the central government's respective responsibility for development in city quarters where exclusion is widespread, local development agreements are being made with some municipalities in metropolitan regions. Administration and the have been instructed to enter local partnerships with municipalities that have signed local In autumn the Government intends to present a bill with proposals to speed up the labour market of newly arrived refugees and their relatives. The aim is to develop a system that provides the individual with both more responsibility and stronger incentives for a rapid labour market . The reception system can thus become more stable in the face of swings in the business cycle and in the number of new arrivals granted permits, at the same time that it is made more flexible from the perspective of each individual's needs. One premise is that it should be worthwhile to move to areas with a good labour market or the potential to offer some other relevant introduction to accelerate entry into the labour market. There is a proposal to give the coordinating responsibility for other actors as well as responsibility together with a newly arrived person to draw up and, when necessary, revise an individual plan to facilitate and accelerate the newly arrived person's . benefits to be paid newly arrived people, assigns and is also responsible for the procurement of so-called pilots who work at the behest of the to provide guidance and support to new arrivals in getting a job. should also be able to offer new arrivals participation in the different programmes that it has available based on what has been agreed in the plan or put forward by the pilot. Service decides who will participate in the programme. Strengthening the work-first principle Making it more attractive to work and strengthening the work-first principle is an important goal of the Government. A fundamental part of this effort has been to reduce the tax on labour. Moreover, measures have been taken to enhance unemployment insurance's role as a readjustment insurance at the same time that measures for reducing the prevalence and volume of incorrect payments have been strengthened. High legal certainty is a prerequisite for maintaining confidence and legitimacy in the social insurance systems. The in-work tax credit was introduced on 1 January 2007 to increase the incentives to work. It has since been expanded to include another two steps in 2008 and 2009. A fourth step is planned for 1 January 2010. The in-work tax credit makes it more worthwhile to work for those currently excluded from the labour market since the average tax is reduced for all wage earners. By lowering marginal taxes, the in-work tax credit also helps strengthen the incentives for those who already have a job to work more hours. For lowand middle-income wage earners in particular, such as women working part-time, the lower marginal taxes are expected to have positive effects on the number of hours worked. All in all, the Government estimates that the three steps implemented in the in-work tax credit will lead to an increase of almost 1.6 per cent in the number of people employed in the long run and about a 2.4 per cent increase in the total number of hours worked. GDP is expected to increase 1.9 per cent in the long term as a result of these reforms. External forecasters who have evaluated the Government's policy, such as , () and the , have made similar estimates. Employment and earned income may in the long run be expected to increase most for those with the lowest incomes (see Figure 5). Percentage effect of the in-work tax credit on the financial well-being of the population as a whole in different income groups As part of the efforts to provide a greater stimulus to the labour supply and increase sustainable employment, the Government will present a bill in autumn to further strengthen the in-work tax credit within the framework of a fourth step. The proposal means a reduction in the marginal tax of about 11.5 percentage points for lowand middleincome wage earners. For example, for a nursing assistant with a monthly wage in 2009 of almost 000, this reform, together with the two previous reforms, means a 6.1 percentage point reduction in the marginal tax and a 6.8 percentage point reduction in the average tax. Growth in society is affected not only by the number of hours worked, but also by productivity. Against this background it is also important for the tax system to be designed so that it pays for people to get a higher education or further training as part of their working life. The Government has therefore combined the in-work tax credit with a limit on the tax take from the state income tax on earned income. On 1 January 2009, the marginal tax was lowered by 20 percentage points on taxable earned incomes between 500 and 367 600 per year. The cut in the state income tax is thus aimed at the lower part of the state state income tax scale. The intention was to increase the incentives to work and raise the premium on education, which in the long run can raise the productivity of large groups of the employed. The unemployment insurance system Unemployment insurance is an adjustment insurance aimed at ensuring income protection during a period of transition from one job to another. One of the prerequisites for obtaining income related unemployment benefits when unemployed is that the jobseeker is a member of an unemployment insurance fund and has had a continuous membership equivalent to at least twelve months ('membership requirements'). recent years, the number of members in the unemployment insurance funds has declined sharply. Since October 2008, however, the decline has been reversed and the number of members has increased. reason for the membership increase is the deterioration in the labour market, which has been a factor in making it more important to belong to an unemployment insurance fund, but the Government's reforms described below have also contributed to the membership increase. the end of , the unemployment insurance funds had almost 3 809 000 members, or 69 per cent of the working age population. To encourage new and returning members in the unemployment insurance funds, several changes in the unemployment insurance were made in 2009. A temporary change in the membership requirements was introduced to increase people's eligibility for income-related In determining membership requirements, a member in an unemployment insurance fund will be able to count one month extra for each month of membership in 2009. change, a member can fulfil membership requirements in six months instead of the twelve months normally required. The change also makes it possible to qualify for income-related unemployment benefits sooner. The entrance requirements to become a member of an unemployment insurance fund have also been changed by eliminating the requirement for how much one has to work and the requirement for the job to have immediately preceded membership. The change encourages more people to participate in the unemployment insurance while it helps simplify administration of the insurance. Another change introduced is that the unemployment contribution is now tax deductible for employed members. contribution is only paid by employed members, the reduction means that the marginal effects of the transition from unemployment to employment decrease while the change encourages increased membership in the Lastly, new rules for unemployment benefits after temporary or part- time absence have been introduced to improve the incentives to work. The rules have been changed so that certain social insurance benefits can be included in the unemployment insurance. In the 2010 Budget , the Government proposes several changes in the unemployment insurance aimed, inter alia, at making use of the labour supply in groups who have been on long-term sick leave and whose entitlement to sickness benefits or sickness compensation has run An extension of the time exemption in unemployment insurance from five to ten years during a transition period for people who have been absent from the labour market on account of attested illness has Under this proposal, someone who has been on sick leave for many years whose capacity to work is not permanently reduced will become eligible for unemployment benefits. period is also proposed for previous members in an unemployment insurance fund whose entitlement to sickness benefits or temporary sickness compensation has expired. People who have left an unemployment insurance fund between 1 January 2007 and 30 and who rejoin a fund between 1 October 2009 and 31 should be able to meet membership terms in three months. It is also proposed that in order for this group to be allowed the right to income-related benefits, it should be able to rejoin under the terms that prevailed under the earlier membership requirements. This should apply to benefit periods granted beginning January 2010 and ending January 2013. There are also proposals for improved and simplified rules for entrepreneurs in the unemployment insurance. Under the proposals, the concept of entrepreneur in the unemployment insurance is linked to the Income Tax Act. The rules for unemployment benefits in the event of a temporary suspension of business activities should be clarified, as should the rules for aggregation of income from periods of business activity and from periods of employment. The entrepreneur's daily earnings should be based on the most recent tax assessment or if it is more advantageous, on the average of the two years that immediately precede the income year in the most recent tax assessment. An entrepreneur who closes a business within 24 months of its start should be able to receive benefits based on income during previous employment if it is more favourable than basing benefits on income from his or her own company. In the event of unemployment, a business that is run alongside full-time employment or alongside full-time entrepreneurship should not be considered, regardless of how much income the parallel business generates. The proposals should be able to come into effect by 1 2010 at the latest. Finally it is proposed that time that a person has been prevented from working on account of an assignment by the social welfare child to a family or emergency home should be viewed as exempt from the determination of the time frame. The change should be able to apply beginning January 2010. Better control of the insurance systems The Government's efforts to maintain confidence in the social protection systems and their legitimacy by preventing erroneous payments from these systems continues. In its 2009 Budget , the Government reported a number of measures aimed at preventing erroneous payments from the social protection systems in the unemployment insurance. Also in the 2010 Budget , the Government reported measures aimed at preventing and blocking erroneous payments. As part of the Government's efforts to prevent erroneous payments, the and (), together with most other agencies dealing with payments from the welfare systems, have been given the task of collaborating on developing methods for the work on erroneous payments and reporting results. ' work is to be reported annually in a joint communication to the Government, beginning 22 February 2010. have also been instructed to report measures planned and taken for implementation in view of the legislative amendments made to enable more electronic exchange of information between authorities with the aim of increasing effectiveness and efficiency and reducing erroneous payments and improving service to the individual. IAF reports indicate that development work aimed at developing systems and finding forms for an electronic exchange of information between the Swedish () and the Swedish Enforcement Authority has begun but it is too early to establish a timetable for implementation. They also indicate that work has begun on expanding the unemployment insurance funds' information exchange with the . In addition, work is under way with the aim of providing IAF with direct access to databases and the with direct access to information in IAF's statistical and supervision database. has reported that the exchange of information will result in considerable simplification and operational efficiencies and ensure uniform and legally secure treatment. The earliest that the expanded information exchange can be established, however, is (dnr A2009/2492). 4.3A well-functioning labour market. To improve matching of labour market needs To promote flexibility combined with employment security and reduce labour market segmentation, with due regard to the role of the social partners The sharp deterioration in the labour market situation poses major challenges. Since the fourth quarter of 2008, the number of people employed has declined, unemployment has increased and the number of dismissal notices is still high. Labour market policy has been adjusted for the worsened economic situation by means of forceful measures for both the shortand the longterm unemployed. As a result of the adjustment, resources are not focused solely on those most detached from the labour market. A well-functioning matching is a prerequisite for improving the functioning of the labour market. The Government has taken various initiatives to strengthen matching, particularly in view of the worsened labour market situation. A new rules system for labour immigration was introduced on . It puts more weight on the employers' assessment of the need to employ people outside the EU/EEA and makes it possible for all occupational groups to get permits to work in . According to indicators, employment protection in is now more flexible. In its latest measurement published in spring , was shown to have the 21st strongest employment protection of 30 countries. To give work environment policy a more proactive and positive content, intentions are to begin a new phase in the development work in this area, with the aim of drawing up a long-term strategy for future policy. Modernising labour market institutions The goal of the 's new organisation as a nationally integrated public authority in 2008 was to establish a uniform, legally secure, and effective and efficient operation with more transparent management and governance. regularly follows up the reorganisation, which will also be evaluated by an external consultant. It is clear from the final report that the submitted to the Government in 2009 (dnr A2008/1704) that the thinks that many of the problems identified by the Government in the old organisation have now been or partly solved. The Government is of the opinion that the of the new authority, the , has now made it possible to achieve a more uniform, legally secure, and effective and efficient operation with more transparent management and governance. The Government, however, will wait for the external consultant's final report on the evaluation before a final assessment is made as to whether the reform of what was previously the has achieved the intended result. An extensive effort is under way to increase cooperation between central government agencies. The goal is to have one place where the public is better able to get comprehensive support from several central government agencies. , together with the Tax Authority and the , has reached an agreement on offering services on the same premises and coordinating certain simpler administrative tasks in a large number of places around the country. On 1 2009, 171 of the offices originally planned had opened. Improving matching of jobseekers and job vacancies During the first half of 2008, the work of the was most affected by the shortage of labour in certain sectors whereas in autumn there was a decline in the inflow of job vacancies. The rapid downturn in the economy during the second half of 2008 resulted in a high number of dismissal notices in all parts of the country. 's new organisation has made it better able to adapt its organisation to the demands made of the Service, for example, in connection with dismissal notices. In early 2009, the Government presented a number of new initiatives to counter the rising unemployment in the Government , Measures for and Adaptation (Govt. 2008/09:97) and in connection with the 2009 Spring Fiscal Policy (2008/09:100). These initiatives include a focus on personal coaches and work experience placements expanded to include skills development, where the jobseeker is given the opportunity to maintain contact with working life and establish and develop his or her skills. , with its new organisation, has been better able to redistribute resources to those places where efforts needed to be expanded. has been given a remit to expand its matching activities and provide early and individually tailored support to be able to help jobseekers return to work. In 2009 the is to give special consideration to the demands made on the authority by the labour market situation. This means setting priorities for the distribution of resources on an ongoing basis to regions suffering more seriously from dismissal notices and ensuring that early coaching initiatives take place. In this effort, support professionals who increase and diversify the services offered by the , are of great importance, for example, by providing jobseekers with a personal job coach.