Martin Wolgast, Lund University Department of Psychology
On the 28th of March, 2025 at 12:15-13:00 Martin Wolgast presented the report for the Swedish Agency for Work Environment Expertise on special exposure to work-related stress and ill health based on ethnicity, skin color, and religion. Martin shared insights from literature on this relationship in Sweden and internationally, discuss preventive measures, and highlight the knowledge and experience of relevant actors. Finally, he identified knowledge gaps and reflect on how systematic work environment efforts and preventive measures can minimize these risks.
Watch the recording on Youtube:
Sweden has long positioned itself as a champion of equality and social justice — a country with robust legal protections, progressive labor policies, and a self-image grounded in fairness. Yet beneath this image, a different reality persists for many individuals in the Swedish labor market. A new report from the Swedish Agency for Work Environment Expertise (Myndigheten för arbetsmiljökunskap) reveals the extent to which racialized and religious minorities in Sweden are exposed to unequal and often harmful working conditions. Drawing on an extensive review of international and Swedish research, a national survey, and interviews with stakeholders and civil society, the report exposes a pattern of systemic disadvantage that is both widespread and deeply normalized.
At the heart of the report is a concern that goes beyond individual acts of bias: the structures of the labor market themselves reproduce stress and ill-health among marginalized groups. Whether through insecure employment contracts, limited career mobility, or unequal access to workplace support, people who are racialized as non-white or who belong to minority religious communities face elevated levels of stress, anxiety, and exclusion. This is not merely a question of perceived inequality. The report documents clear correlations between perceived discrimination and actual health outcomes — including mental health issues, physical fatigue, burnout, and reduced recovery after work.
The Swedish data aligns with a growing body of international research showing that work-related stress is unequally distributed. In particular, the concept of minority stress — originally developed in the context of LGBTQ+ research — is used here to describe the chronic psychological burden that arises from being part of a stigmatized group. The report also discusses the notion of assimilation stress, highlighting the emotional toll of having to downplay or suppress cultural, religious, or ethnic identity in order to “fit in” at work. These stressors are compounded by workplace norms around emotional expression — what the report refers to as “racialized emotional norms” — where certain ways of being are considered more professional, more acceptable, or more ‘Swedish’ than others.
What emerges is a portrait of the workplace not simply as a site of economic activity, but as a microcosm of broader societal power relations. Access to secure employment, recognition, and psychological safety becomes a marker of inclusion, while others are pushed to the margins through more precarious contracts, overlooked qualifications, or heightened scrutiny. The report underscores that individuals with migrant backgrounds — particularly those from Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia — are disproportionately employed in positions below their education level, face slower career progression, and are more often subjected to bullying or harassment. The presence of discriminatory practices is not isolated to hiring, but permeates everyday interactions, evaluations, and power dynamics within organizations.
Importantly, the report also draws attention to invisibility as a form of harm. Many instances of racism or discrimination are not overt, but subtle and cumulative — expressed through microaggressions, exclusion from informal networks, or the silencing of diversity-related concerns. Individuals who attempt to address these issues may find themselves isolated or penalized, especially when support from management or trade unions is lacking. This dynamic — where raising issues of discrimination leads to further marginalization — points to a deeper cultural and structural resistance to confronting racism within Swedish institutions.
The human rights implications are clear. The right to work under fair, just, and safe conditions is enshrined in international human rights law, including instruments such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. These rights are not fulfilled simply by the absence of explicit discrimination; they require positive action to ensure that systemic barriers are dismantled. In this light, the report’s findings challenge us to think critically about how the Swedish labor market — and by extension, Swedish society — lives up to its human rights commitments.
The recommendations offered in the report are both practical and normatively grounded. They include fostering inclusive organizational cultures, implementing systematic and recurring training on anti-discrimination and unconscious bias, promoting leadership that is both active and relationally competent, and providing access to mentorship and support for employees from marginalized backgrounds. These are not only interventions for improved productivity or employee satisfaction, but essential measures to realize the right to dignity, equality, and health at work. Crucially, the report does not stop at identifying individual vulnerabilities, but calls for broader structural reforms to create a more equitable labor market — one grounded in strong protections for workers, regardless of background, and capable of addressing the systemic roots of discrimination and stress.
For scholars and practitioners in the field of human rights, the report offers a bridge between theory and practice. It invites us to reframe occupational health and workplace equity as core human rights concerns, and not merely as questions of policy or management. And it reminds us that rights are not only violated through explicit prohibitions, but also through silence, neglect, and systemic inertia.
Martin Wolgast is Senior lecturer and researcher at the Department of Psychology at Lund University and a member of the Human Rights Profile Area.
