The Minister for Employment[1] (Swedish: Arbetsmarknadsminister) is a member of the Government of Sweden and is the head of the Ministry of Employment.
The position was introduced in 1974 during Palme I cabinet and abolished in 1998 under the Persson cabinet, when the responsibilities were transferred to the Ministry of Industry, Employment and Communications, where from 1998 to 2002, the deputy minister for industry, employment and communications and from 2002 to 2006, the minister for employment were ministers responsible for the issues. When the Reinfeldt cabinet took office in 2006, the position was reinstated.
Independent
Historical parties: Lantmanna Moderate National Party Liberals Liberals Liberals Liberals
Present parties: Social Democrats Moderate Centre Left Liberals Christian Democrats Green Sweden Democrats
In addition to the head of the ministry, the Ministry of Employment has at times also housed additional deputy ministers responsible for various areas such as immigration, gender equality, labor law, youth affairs, etc. These ministerial titles varied, and most often covered only a part of the minister's responsibilities, usually the dominant area of focus. For example, Anna-Greta Leijon served not only as the minister for immigration but also held responsibility for labor law issues[2] and matters concerning disabled individuals in the workplace. Karin Andersson, as the deputy minister of employment, was responsible for gender equality and immigration issues,[3] a combination that has recurred in later times.
In the 2019 government, the minister associated with the Ministry of Employment, in addition to the minister of employment, held the title of minister for gender equality/minister responsible for combating discrimination and segregation.[4]
Before the establishment of the Ministry of Employment, many matters were handled within the Ministry of the Interior, where individuals such as Camilla Odhnoff were responsible for immigration and family affairs, including gender equality.[5]