A new collective bargaining agreement will make “major improvements” for up to 60,000 agency workers in Sweden by raising their pay entitlements. This follows seven months of negotiations between employers of the staffing industry and the LO union.

Union representative and negotiator Kent Ackholt told Staffing Industry Analysts that the agreement will mainly affect blue collar workers.

It will make changes to the so-called guaranteed wage income, which pays agency staff a certain monthly or hourly wage. This applies in cases when a temporary worker has not been placed but is working or engaged in training activities.

The new tariff now includes a guaranteed hourly wage, which pays skilled workers SEK 108 (approximately €12.56 per hour) and unskilled workers SEK 100 per hour (approximately €11.63 per hour). 

Before, the guaranteed wage did not exceed 90 % of the monthly average earnings paid to agency workers in the last three months.  

The new agreement will expire on 30 April 2015. It was signed by the association of Swedish Staffing Agencies and the 14 unions affiliated with LO this week after what have been called very lengthy debates.