Several recent surveys report statistics on the experience of discrimination in Swedish working life.
Victims of discrimination - Work environment 2024
The Swedish Work Environment Authority's Work Environment 2024 survey, which is aimed at working people aged 16-64, states:
- 14 % that they have experienced discrimination in their workplace, based on at least one of the grounds of discrimination.
- A breakdown shows that gender and age are the most common reasons for discrimination. 4 % indicate gender and 4 % indicate age, 3 % indicate ethnicity and 1 % each indicate disability or religion (multiple answers were possible).
- Too few respondents reported that they had experienced discrimination related to gender identity and gender expression, or sexual orientation, in the workplace in the past year. However, this should not be interpreted to mean that such discrimination does not occur in Swedish workplaces.
- A comparison between women and men in different age groups shows that:
Women aged 16-29 are the group most likely - 23 per cent - to report experiencing discrimination in the workplace. Men aged 50-64 are the least likely to have experienced discrimination - 10 per cent. - 4 % have experienced sexual harassment (a form of discrimination). Respondents have either been victimised by managers, colleagues or others, such as customers, patients or students. The most common victimisation is by others (customers, patients, etc.), followed by colleagues.
DO report on discrimination 2025
The Discrimination Ombudsman's (DO) report ”Incidence of Discrimination 2025” describes, among other things, the results of the Swedish Work Environment Authority's survey above. The DO also reports on reports of discrimination to the authority in relation to working life.
In 2024, the DO received 1,329 complaints about perceived discrimination in working life. The complaints concerned (one complaint can cover several reasons):
- Management and distribution of labour - 31 % of notifications.
- Recruitment - 26 %.
- Conditions of employment - 25 %.
- Dismissal or resignation - 24 %.
- Obligations to investigate and take action, for example in cases of harassment - 20 %.
- Pregnancy - 4 %.
- Probationary period - 3 %.
- Other 16 %
The DO points out that the events described in the reports do not always constitute discrimination in the sense of the Discrimination Act. Most of the reports included in the statistics have not led to the DO initiating a supervision in the case.
Links to learn more
Read the DO report Incidence of discrimination here
Read the Swedish Work Environment Authority's report The work environment 2024 here (and here is an overview)
