Part-time work is common in the Nordic countries, especially among women. About 41 per cent of all employed Norwegian women work part-time, and part-time work is common in female-dominated occupations. The situation is similar in the other Nordic countries – the only exception is Finland, where it is more common that women work full-time.

As part of the Swedish chairmanship in the Nordic Council of Ministers, the resource and information centre Nordic Information on Gender – NIKK – has been commissioned to conduct a Nordic study of the short- and long-term consequences of part-time work. NIKK will explore the economic effects of part-time work for employees and their families, with an emphasis on how it affects gender equality. Besides salary differences, the study will also focus on pensions and public social security benefits. Since many part-time workers share family financial responsibilities with a partner, the study will look at incomes at both the individual and family levels. What happens in cases of separation or the partner’s death will also be studied.

Marianne Sundström, professor in labour market economics at Stockholm University, will conduct the study together with Master’s student Alma Lanninger Wennemo. The project will have a reference group consisting of Helle Holt, senior researcher at the Danish National Research of Social Research in Denmark, Cathrine Egeland, research director at the Work Research Institute in Norway, Johanna Lammi-Taskula, senior researcher at the National Institute for Health and Welfare in Finland, and Guðbjörg Linda Rafnsdóttir, professor in sociology at the University of Iceland. The researchers will meet at a workshop in Gothenburg on 1 March. A pre-study has been completed by MA Sandra Engelbrecht.

The results of the study will be presented at a Nordic conference arranged by NIKK in cooperation with the Swedish chairmanship in the Nordic Council of Ministers on 22 October in Stockholm. The study will also be presented at the NIKK’s website and in various publications.

Questions can be directed to Bosse Parbring, who is coordinating the project.
Email: bosse.parbring@genus.se
Tel. +46 (0)31 786 92 30