Swedish Trade Union Confederation Explained

Swedish Trade Union Confederation
Location Country:	Sweden
Affiliation:	ITUC, ETUC
Members:	1.23 million
Native Name:	Landsorganisationen i Sverige (LO)
Native Name Lang:	sv
Headquarters:	Stockholm, Sweden
Key People:	Johan Lindholm,^[1] president
Website:	www.lo.se

The Swedish Trade Union Confederation (Swedish: Landsorganisationen i Sverige in Swedish pronounced as /ˈlânː(d)sɔrɡanɪsaˌɧuːnɛn iː ˈsvæ̌rjɛ/; literally "The National Organisation in Sweden"), commonly referred to as LO (in Swedish ˈɛ̂lːuː/), is a national trade union centre, an umbrella organisation for fourteen Swedish trade unions that organise mainly "blue-collar" workers. The Confederation, which gathers around 1.5 million employees out of Sweden's 10 million people population, was founded in 1898 by blue-collar unions on the initiative of the 1897 Scandinavian Labour Congress and the Swedish Social Democratic Party, which almost exclusively was made up by trade unions.^[2] In 2019 union density of Swedish blue-collar workers was 60%,^[3] a decline by seventeen percentage points since 2006 when blue-collar union density was 77%. A strong contributing factor was the considerably raised fees to union unemployment funds in January 2007 made by the new centre-right government.^{[4] [5]}

History

See also: Swedish labour movement.

Organisation

The fourteen affiliates of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation span both the private and the public sector.^[6] The member unions are fully independent, with the role of the Confederation limited to the co-ordination of wage bargaining, international activities, trade union education and other areas. Another important task is to promote the organisation's views to decision-makers and the general public. It also has representatives on the governing bodies of many government authorities. The Confederation is also responsible for research and signing labour market insurance schemes. The member unions, however, carry the responsibility for the administration of the unemployment insurance funds.

While its Danish sister organisation, the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions, cut its formal ties to the country's Social Democratic party in 1995, the Swedish Trade Union Confederation maintains a strong cooperation with the Social Democrats. Although the organisations are independent from each other, the Swedish Trade Union Confederation has a representative on the party's executive committee elected by the Party Congress. Also, both the Confederation and the member unions contribute substantial amounts of money to the party.

Until 1987 there was a system of collective membership in the Social Democratic Party for members in the confederation, in which the local union could apply for membership in the Social Democratic Party, effectively enrolling all its members into the Social Democratic Party. (An individual could decline to be part of this collective membership.)

In 1956 social democratic newspaper Stockholms-Tidningen was acquired by the Swedish Trade Union Confederation.^[7] Until recently, it owned 50.1% of the evening newspaper, the largest daily newspaper in Scandinavia . As of 2012, the organisation owns 9% of the newspaper. The organisation bought in 1956 but sold off 49.9 percent to the Norwegian media company Schibsted on 2 May 1996.

The number of member unions has been reduced by mergers. Most recently the Forest and Wood Workers' Union and the Graphic Workers' Union merged into the single GS Union on 1 June 2009.

Affiliates

Current affiliates

Membership of LO affiliates (31 December 2018)^[8] !Union!Abbreviation!Founded!Men!Women!Total!Change (2017)

Swedish Building Workers' Union	Byggnads	1949	77 512	1 218	78 730	409
Swedish Electricians' Union	SEF	1906	18 518	456	18 974	333
Swedish Building Maintenance Workers' Union	Fastighets	1936	13 624	12 700	26 324	718
GS	GS	2009	31 987	6 861	38 848	1 096
Swedish Commercial Employees' Union	Handels	1906	45 665	77 672	123 337	1 001
Swedish Hotel and Restaurant Workers' Union	HRF	1918	10 949	16 017	26 966	921
IF Metall	IF Metal	2006	200 292	46 543	246 835	305
Swedish Municipal Workers' Union	Kommunal	1910	108 426	391 728	500 154	7 333
Swedish Food Workers' Union	Livs	1922	15 317	8 041	23 358	1 062
Swedish Painters' Union	Målarna	1887	9 833	1 277	11 110	47
Swedish Paper Workers' Union	Pappers	1920	11 722	2 190	13 912	370
Swedish Union for Service and Communications Employees	Seko	1970	53 981	18 175	72 156	960
Swedish Musicians' Union	SMF	1907	1 805	469	2 274	13
Swedish Transport Workers' Union	Transport	1897	41 494	8 343	49 837	1 889
TOTAL			641 125	591 690	1 232 815	15 575
			52%	48%		1.25%

Former affiliates

Union	Abbreviation^[9]	Founded	Left	Reason not affiliated	Membership (1910)^[10]	Membership (1954)^[11]
	KPF	1921	1970	Merged into SEKO	N/A	1,173
	SSF	1908	1967	Merged into Kommunal	347	7,928
Stockholm Union of Sculptors		1896	1910	Dissolved	32	N/A
	SLF	1908	2001	Merged into Kommunal	1,752	38,980
	Bageri	1896	1922	Merged into Livs	3,168	N/A
Swedish Boilermakers' Union	SDF	1903	1948	Merged into Fabriks	154	N/A
	SBbaf	1893	1973	Merged into GF	1,176	11,391
	SBiaf	1899	1965	Merged into Livs	2,045	7,939
	Murare	1890	1961	Merged into Byggnads	4,082	15,594
	Btaf	1924	1949	Merged into Byggnads	N/A	N/A
Swedish Butchers' Union	Slakteri	1904	1922	Merged into Livs	321	N/A
Swedish Chimney Sweeps' Union	SSf	1919	1981	Merged into Kommunal	N/A	963
	CPF	1905	1970	Merged into SEKO	220	6,676
	SBaf	1889	1972	Merged into Beklädnads	2,091	37,959
	Tunnbinderi	1892	1936	Merged into Trä	314	N/A
	FCPF	1917	1970	Merged into SEKO	N/A	20,016
	Fabriks	1891	1993	Merged into IF	20,195	63,086
	Skogs- o Trä	1998	2009	Merged into GS	N/A	N/A
	SSAF	1918	1998	Merged into Skogs- o Trä	N/A	36,486
	Gjutare	1893	1964	Merged into Metall	2,588	11,408
Swedish Gilders' and Glaziers' Union	Förgylleri o Glas	1900	1913	Dissolved	282	N/A
	GF	1973	2009	Merged into GS	N/A	N/A
	IF	1993	2006	Merged into IF Metall	N/A	N/A
	FAF	1906	1989	Merged into Handels	46	4,407
	Hatt o Päls	1922	1933	Merged into SBaf	N/A	N/A
Swedish Hat Workers' Union	Hatt	1903	1922	Merged into Hatt o Päls	117	N/A
	Litograf	1904	1973	Merged into GF	240	4,712
	Metall	1888	2006	Merged into IF Metall	30,826	234,157
	Gruv	1895	1994	Merged into Metall	2,442	11,939
	SPF	1886	1970	Merged into SEKO	2,658	17,986
	Vårdpers	1906	1970	Merged into SEKO	496	1,557
Swedish Pulp Operators' Union	SP	1920	1946	Merged into Pappers	N/A	N/A
	SJMF	1899	1970	Merged into SEKO	18,022	64,834
	SVaf	1914	1970	Merged into SEKO	N/A	16,640
	SSoT	1890	1962	Dissolved	666	5,573
	SSF	1932	1996	Merged into SEKO	N/A	14,487
	Sågverks	1897	1949	Merged into SSAF	3,732	N/A
	SBOP	1893	2000	Merged into Byggnads	1,512	3,505
	SSoL	1888	1972	Merged into Beklädnads	3,528	10,882
	FF	1918	2002	Disaffiliated	N/A	7,947
	Sten	1897	1970	Dissolved	3,053	5,328
Swedish Stucco Workers' Union	Stuckatör	1904	1948	Dissolved	53	N/A
	SvT	1901	1970	Merged into SEKO	705	20,718
	Beklädnads	1972	1993	Merged into IF	N/A	N/A
	Textil	1898	1972	Merged into Beklädnads	3,443	41,864
Swedish Tile and Slab Workers' Union	SKoP	1891	1946	Merged into Fabriks	428	N/A
	Tobaks	1889	1964	Merged into Livs	1,910	1,784
	Typograf	1886	1973	Merged into GF	4,022	15,804
	Trä	1924	1998	Merged into Skogs- o Trä	N/A	60,321
	Trä	1889	1924	Dissolved	7,972	N/A
Union of Waiters of the Göteborgssystem in Stockholm	GSSF	1905	1910	Dissolved	125	N/A
	DFF	1905	1962	Dissolved	1,707	14,687

List of chairmen

• Fredrik Sterky, 1898–1900
• Herman Lindqvist, 1900–1920
• Arvid Thorberg, 1920–1930
• Edvard Johanson, 1930–1936
• Albert Forslund, February–September 1936
• August Lindberg, 1936–1947
• Axel Strand, 1947–1956
• Arne Geijer, 1956–1973
• Gunnar Nilsson, 1973–1983
• Stig Malm, 1983–1993
• Bertil Jonsson, 1994–2000
• Wanja Lundby-Wedin, 2000—2012
• Karl-Petter Thorwaldsson, 2012–2020
• Susanna Gideonsson, 2020–2024
• Johan Lindholm, 2024–present^[12]

See also

• Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (Danish LO)
• Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (Norwegian LO)
• Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees (TCO)
• Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations (SACO)
• Central Organisation of the Workers of Sweden (SAC, Swedish trade union not connected to LO)
• Rehn–Meidner Model

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bohlin . Albin . Efter avhoppet: Byggnads ordförande vald till ny LO-boss . Altinget.se . Altinget . 21 May 2024 . 20 May 2024.
2. Torvald Karlbom Den svenska fackföreningsrörelsen, Stockholm: Tidens förlag, pp. 45-47
3. Yearly average in 2019. See Anders Kjellberg (2020) Kollektivavtalens täckningsgrad samt organisationsgraden hos arbetsgivarförbund och fackförbund, Department of Sociology, Lund University. Studies in Social Policy, Industrial Relations, Working Life and Mobility. Research Reports 2020:1, Appendix 3 (in English) Table A
4. Anders Kjellberg "The Decline in Swedish Union Density since 2007" Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies (NJWLS) Vol. 1. No 1 (August 2011), pp. 67-93
5. Anders Kjellberg and Christian Lyhne Ibsen (2016) "Attacks on union organizing: Reversible and irreversible changes to the Ghent-systems in Sweden and Denmark", in Trine Pernille Larsen and Anna Ilsøe (eds.)(2016) Den Danske Model set udefra - komparative perspektiver på dansk arbejdsmarkedsregulering, Copenhagen: Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag, p. 292
6. Web site: This is LO . 2023-02-23 . The Swedish Trade Union Confederation.
7. Book: Newspapers in International Librarianship: Papers Presented by the Newspaper Section at IFLA General Conferences. Munich. https://books.google.com/books?id=0F6U82kZXjsC&pg=PA18. 2003. IFLA Publications. 978-3-11-096279-6. 18. Hartmut Walravens. Edmund King. Ingemar Oscarsson. Development of the Swedish press and journalism since the Thirty Years War until today.
8. Web site: Kjellberg . Anders . The Membership Development of Swedish Trade Unions and Union Confederations Since the End of the Nineteenth Century . Lund University . 8 October 2019 . 188 . 2017.
9. Book: Kjellberg . Anders . The Membership Development of Swedish Trade Unions and Union Confederations Since the End of the Nineteenth Century . 2017 . Lund University . 978-9172673106.
10. Book: Kjellberg . Anders . The Membership Development of Swedish Trade Unions and Union Confederations Since the End of the Nineteenth Century . 2017 . Lund University . 978-9172673106 . 198.
11. Book: Mitchell . James P. . Directory of Labor Organizations: Europe . 1955 . United States Department of Labor . Washington DC. 27.19 - 27.34.
12. Web site: Bohlin . Albin . Efter avhoppet: Byggnads ordförande vald till ny LO-boss . Altinget.se . Altinget . 21 May 2024 . 20 May 2024.