Sweden – Unpaid job trials are exploitative and akin to slavery, says Union



Asking people to participate in unpaid job trials before they are offered employment is a ruthless way to exploit them and the practice should be banned, according to Leif Håkansson of Swedish labour union IF Metall, reports The Gothenburg Post.
Mr Håkansson, in his article, lamented the fact that job trials are becoming more common: “Unscrupulous employment agencies send out trial staff to their clients, so they can see what newcomers have to offer. A job appointment is a business deal. An employer pays money to employees who work. Voluntary, free work for good causes is OK. Involuntary free work that makes someone money is slavery.”
“The less scrupulous employers may argue that free work is voluntary. You choose if you want to take it. But this approach does not work when unemployment is high. When people will do almost anything to be considered for any job.”
He continued: “We should not allow some employers to avoid paying insurance because those who work for free are given no insurance coverage at all. Free trial work is a ruthless way to exploit people. Many of those who accept these kind of decisions are desperate to find work. They are prepared to work for a week without pay or insurance in a small garage, in a café, in a cleaning firm, or for an employment agency.”
“In companies with collective agreements there is always a minimum wage and free work is not possible. In other Swedish firms there is no statutory minimum wage and it's not a crime in Sweden to have staff working for free.”
For Mr Håkansson transparency is key to putting an end to the exploitation: “Perhaps there is a need to change the law to stop this kind of 'employment' or at least to improve communication so that all 'offers' of trial jobs are more visible and transparent. What employers are doing in terms of free labour should be fully in the spotlight. We should refuse to allow them to offer bad conditions for ‘workers’.”
- See more at: http://www.staffingindustry.com/eng/Research-Publications/Daily-News/Sweden-Unpaid-job-trials-are-exploitative-and-akin-to-slavery-says-Union-33154?cookies=disabled#sthash.YTh73SgV.dpuf