Kampen om arbetslinjen
En diskursanalys av begreppets framställning och politiska innebörder under valåret 2010 i tidningarna Aftonbladet och Svenska Dagbladet
Work-first principleWorkUnemploymentDiscourseDiscourse analysisThe AllianceThe Red-GreensEarned income tax creditAftonbladetSvenska DagbladetArbetslinjenArbeteArbetslöshet diskursDiskursanalysAlliansenDet rödgröna samarbetetJobbskatteavdragAftonbladetSvenska Dagbladet
The concept of the work-first principle (arbetslinjen) might be considered old, but still serves as the main principle as well as an instrument in the Swedish labour market and social policy today. The original idea was that work and willingness to work was to be rewarded, especially due to a common opposition against the passive receipt of grants. The general definition of work, today, is that it is something desirable that should be achieved and that unemployed primarily will be offered training or work rather than grants and subsidies. When the Moderate party re-launched themselves as Sweden's "workers' party of today", in the beginning of the 2000's, the concept was brought back into the spotlight. In the elections of 2006 and 2010, the labour market was widely debated and become a controversial issue, with the concept of the work-first principle playing a major role.The purpose of this thesis is to analyse and problematize how the concept was presented and explained in the nationwide newspapers Aftonbladet and Svenska Dagbladet during the 2010 elections, this in order to increase the understanding of the concept?s contemporary definition and policy implications. This was done by analysing news articles, including articles from the debate and cultural sections, as well as editorials in afore mentioned newspapers, through a discourse analytical approach using the conceptual and analytical tools from both the discourse theory and the critical discourse analysis. The result of this thesis shows that the discourse is not primarily a matter of the work-first principle?s existence or nonexistence but rather how it should be defined and what to include. Other main result was that the common definition of the work-first principle and its content, during the election of 2010 (1 January - 19 September), was closely connected to the policy of the, ruling Alliance Government.