This thematic report describes the development for temporary employees aged 15-74 years in the period 2005-2019. In addition to a description of development over time, the report includes a detailed description of the group temporary employees in 2019, flows to and from temporary employment in the period 2009-2019, and a comparison of the development in Sweden and the rest of the EU in 2018.

One in six employees in temporary employment in 2019

In 2019, there were 766 000 persons in temporary employment, which corresponds to 16.6 percent of all employees. The percentage of temporary employees was higher among women than among men, 18.3 percent of employed women compared to 14.9 percent of employed men.

Young people aged 15-24 years accounted for roughly one-third, 34.6 percent, of all temporary employees, which was 28.7 percentage points higher than among permanent employees. Among young people, there are many students working extra hours during their studies, or as temporary employment during holidays. It was also common for persons aged 25-34 years to have temporary employment; persons in this age group accounted for 28.8 percent of all temporary employees.

Temporary employment more common among foreign born persons

Among foreign born persons, one-fourth of all employees had temporary employment in 2019. The corresponding figure among Swedish born persons was one in seven employees. Foreign born persons thereby accounted for 30.8 percent of all temporary employees, which can be compared with only 18.6 percent of all permanent employees.

More women than men in temporary positions

The concept “temporary employment” includes several different forms of employment, where the most common type in 2019 was employment on an hourly or needs basis, which accounted for 51.2 percent of all temporary employment. The number of persons employed on an hourly or needs basis increased in the period 2005-2019, by 148 000 to 393 000, while the number of persons in the second largest group, temporary positions, decreased by 45 000 to 118 000. Among persons employed on an hourly or needs basis and in temporary positions, there was a higher percentage of women than men, while in the groups probationary employment and project-based employment the percentages were reversed.

Largest share of temporary employees in hotels and restaurants

In 2019, the largest share of temporary employees was employed in the sector “human health and social care”, followed by “education”. In these sectors, there were significantly more women than men, in particular in human health and social care, in which there were 108 000 women, nearly three times more than the number of men. Hotels and restaurants had the highest share of temporary employees, 42.2 percent, while “manufacturing of machinery” had 6.6 percent, the lowest share.

Many temporary employees want permanent employment

Most temporary employees, 57.4 percent, would prefer permanent employment, but there were large variations between different age groups. Among young people aged 15-24 years with temporary employment, 42.2 percent preferred permanent employment. Among those who preferred permanent employment, the age group 35-54 years was the largest group, at 78.3 percent. Average working time among temporary employees was lower than among permanent employees, 25.5 hours compared to 30.4 hours, and temporary employees to a larger extent wished to increase the number of working hours.

Number, but not share of temporary employees increased

In the period 2005-2019, the number of temporary employees increased, while the total share of employees changed only marginally. Among employees with compulsory education, the share of temporary employees increased from 20.0 percent in 2005 to 37.9 percent in 2019. Among employees with upper secondary and post-secondary education, the share remained unchanged at around 15 percent throughout the time period.

The share of employees among Swedish born persons with temporary employment was relatively unchanged over the period, while among foreign born persons, the share increased somewhat, from 21.1 percent in 2005 to 24.7 percent in 2019. The share of temporary employees among foreign born persons was around 10 percentage points higher than among Swedish born persons in 2019. Older people aged 65-74 years was another group that increased, from 38.7 percent of all employees in 2005 to 48.1 percent of all employees in 2019.

Transition from temporary employment to unemployment more common among foreign born persons than among Swedish born persons

Flows to and from temporary employment are affected by the economy. In 2019, on average 11.5 percent of temporary employees transitioned to permanent employment, 10.3 percent transitioned to being outside the workforce and 5.7 percent transitioned to unemployment. Among temporary employees who changed category on the labour market, it was most common to transition to permanent employment among both Swedish born persons and foreign born persons. A larger share of foreign born persons than Swedish born persons transitioned to unemployment in the following quarter.

Sweden on seventh place in the EU with regard to share of temporary employees

The labour market looks different in each EU country and the share of temporary employees varied in 2018; from more than one in four employees in Spain to just 1.1 percent of employees in Romania. In 2018, temporary employees accounted for 16.8 percent of all employees in Sweden, seventh place in the EU, compared with 14.2 percent, the EU average. In most countries, the share of temporary employees was higher among women than among men and the largest difference was noted in Cyprus.

A more detailed presentation can be found in the report Labour Force Surveys (LFS) – Theme: Development for temporary employees 2005-2019