We are on site during Almedalen Week with Sveriges Kvinnoorganisationer
Start:
June 26, 2025
End:
June 26, 2025
Seminar on "Power to shape society and one’s own life"
June 26 we took part in an important seminar jointly organized by TCO and the Swedish Women’s Organizations during Almedalsveckan 2025.
Topic: “Power to shape society and one’s own life”
Organizers: TCO (Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees) and the Sveriges Kvinnoorganisationen.
Participants:
Therese Svanström, TCO’s chair; Malin Sjöberg Högrell (L); Johanna Haraldsson (S); Hacer Korucu from Hand in Hand for Women; Anja Nordenfeldt from Mamma United; and Amanda Thonander, chair of the Labour Market and Social Committee.
Speeches from the seminar at Almedalen 2025:
Hacer Korucu, founder and chair of the association Hand in Hand for Women, highlighted the needs and demands of foreign-born women to politicians:
“We are determined to shape society and our own lives in order to enter the labor market with our full potential, strengths, knowledge, and experience.
Employers often choose those who speak the language best and are younger, even if they don’t have more experience or education than we do.”
“Women face discrimination when applying for jobs, because of gender, ethnicity, where they come from, or age.”
Hanne Maria Samuelsson, head of membership at Sveriges Kvinnoorganisationen said that women with short education and born outside Europe are among the groups furthest from the labor market.
She added:
“Many women do everything right, yet they still encounter prejudice and outdated mindsets. We must do more to lower the thresholds.”
Women’s opportunities for economic independence and influence are also limited by unpaid household work and care responsibilities, where women often shoulder a larger share. For foreign-born women, this can be an extra barrier to entering working life.
TCO’s chair, Therese Svanström, said:
“We cannot afford to shut out a specific group from the labor market. There is built-in racism in workplaces that we need to talk more about.”
She pointed to several necessary measures: education about the labor market, more supported jobs, and that having one’s own job and means of support is freedom.
Anja Nordenfeldt, Secretary-General and founder of @mamma.united:
“Thresholds must be lowered; a first step can be working a few hours a week.”
Johanna Haraldsson (S), Committee on the Labour Market, Social Democrats:
“Support all the way is important. A guide who accompanies each step toward work can make a big difference.”
Amanda Thonander, chair of the Labour Market and Social Committee, emphasized the need for
“Preschools that make it possible for women with inconvenient working hours in the welfare sector to take jobs.”
You can read more about the event here
