Tidsbegränsade anställningar
En internt komparativ undersökning av gällande rätt och dess faktiska tillämpning
The Employment Protection Act (1982:80; LAS) is one of the cornerstones of the labour law that regulates the relationship between employer and employee. The central rule as stated in 4 § LAS is valid for an indefinite term. LAS is a semi-optional law in accordance with 2 § LAS which facilitates deviation from the central rule.Temporary employment is dealt with in 5 and 6 §§ LAS, regulations and collective bargaining agreements. The purpose of the legislative change on July 12007 was to simplify the use of temporary employment and to make the law more predictable and easier to interpret. The previous law was unnecessarily difficult for the employer to know when to put into practice. The government's objective was to limit employer's possibilities of keeping an employee on a temporary contract for a longer period of time. Shortening thetime that an employee can be on a temporary contract from three to two years during a five-year period with the same employer will increase the security and confidence of theemployee. Temporary employment contracts are an important way into the labour market for young people or for people with little work experience. These contracts also contribute to a more flexible and adaptable labour market even though the protection for the individual employee may be reduced.The Government's bill suggested that temporary employment contracts should be entered into by either general fixed term employment, temporary substitute employment, seasonal employment or when the employee has attained the age of 67. Fixed term employment can be entered into without the employer giving particular reasons as to why, but the employer does have to show there is a need for contract work as opposed to permanent employees.The Labour Court has defined temporary substitute work but it has not been made clear by laws or preparatory work. To employ temporary substitute workers, it is required that one of the permanent workforce is temporarily absent, or it has to be clearly stated in the employment agreement that the position is on a temporary substitute basis. It is also required that the employer state who the position is a substitute for in the permanent workforce as well as for how long the temporary position will be held. Seasonal employment can be entered into for certain periods of time/seasons if the work is dependent on the seasonal variations of the year. The aim for contracts for temporary employment for people over the age of 67 is to make it possible for older people to stay in employment after the retirement age.Through the empirical study it was expressed that the interpretation of 5 § LAS is not clearly constructed and that the practitioner must look in preliminary work and other legal practices to establish the meaning of the legislator. For this reason, 5 § LAS is unclear for the individual employer and employee. It should be discussed as to whether the law should be redrafted.