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In this issue, we focus on several key rulings from the Swedish Labor Court that have significant implications for employers. We delve into case AD 2024 no. 72, where H&M was scrutinized for its handling of employees on parental leave during a company reorganization, and case AD 2024 no. 66, where Region Stockholm faced allegations of disability discrimination. Additionally, we highlight the new rule under the Agency Work Act, which will soon be applied for the first time, requiring companies to offer permanent positions to long-term agency workers. Stay informed on the latest legal developments impacting your workplace.

AD 2024 nr 66

In case AD 2024 no. 66, the Swedish Labor Court examined whether Region Stockholm had violated the Discrimination Act (2008:567) by canceling a job interview for a wheelchair-bound applicant applying for an assistant nurse position in a neonatal unit. The main considerations in the court’s assessment were whether the cancellation constituted direct discrimination and if reasonable accommodations were provided. The court found no evidence of direct discrimination, concluding that the job interview was not canceled solely due to the applicant’s disability, but rather based on her ability to perform the required work duties. Additionally, the court ruled that Region Stockholm had not failed to fulfill its accessibility obligations under law, as the specific care needs of the patients could not be adequately addressed through accessibility measures. Accordingly, the Labor Court ruled that Region Stockholm had not breached the Discrimination Act.

TM reflection: This case law is interesting as it clarifies how far an employer must accommodate the workplace to enable a disabled employee to perform their job. The case is based on the specific circumstances, but the Labour Court provides guidance on how employers should approach such assessments.

AD 2024 nr 72

In case AD 2024 no. 72, the Swedish Labor Court examined whether H&M Hennes & Mauritz Sverige AB had violated the Parental Leave Act (1995:584) by allowing the transition period (Sw. övergångsperiod) for two employees on parental leave to run during their absence. H&M underwent a major reorganization and offered employees reassignments to new positions with lower employment levels. According to the applicable collective bargaining agreement, an employee in such a situation is entitled to a certain transition period.

Two of the employees were on parental leave when they received the reassignment offer. The primary consideration was whether the company’s actions constituted prohibited discrimination under the Parental Leave Act, which safeguards employees from being disadvantaged due to their parental leave. The court also assessed the interpretation of the collective bargaining agreement regarding transition periods and their applicability during an employee’s parental leave. Accordingly, the Labor Court concluded that H&M had not breached the Parental Leave Act, as the transition period was managed in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement without any discriminatory intent or effect.

TM reflection: This case is not only interesting for employers under the same collective bargaining agreement as H&M, but also for other employers, as a rule that in principle corresponds to that of the collective bargaining agreement was adopted in connection with the 2022 legislative amendments to section 7b of the Employment Protection Act (1982:80).

New rule in the Agency Work Act (2012:854) will be applied for the first time soon

As part of the reformed Employment Protection Act (1982:80), the Agency Work Act (2012:854) introduced a new rule. As previously reported, the rule mandates that client companies must offer permanent employment to agency workers who have been placed at the same operational unit within the client company for more than 24 months over a 36-month period. Alternatively, the client company can compensate the worker with two months’ salary. This rule, effective from October 1, 2022, is about to be applied for the first time. It is therefore time to review the engagement period if you engage agency workers to avoid missing any deadlines.

As these recent cases demonstrate, employment law is constantly evolving. To ensure your organization remains compliant and avoids costly legal pitfalls, it’s crucial to stay informed and proactive. If you have any questions or if you need tailored legal advice, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team of experts. 


Anna Jerndorf
Head of Employment
Mobile: +46 76 00 283 32
E-mail: anna.jerndorf@tmpartners.se

Carl Östlund
Advokat, Senior Associate
Mobile: +46 76 00 283 30
E-mail: carl.ostlund@tmpartners.se

Vilma Hansson
Associate
Mobile: +46 76 00 283 39
E-mail: vilma.hansson@tmpartners.se

We have advised Lantmännen ek för, the leading agricultural cooperative in Northen Europe, in connection with the merger of Lantmännen Agroetanol AB, Lantmännen Oats AB and Lantmännen Reppe AB into one single company – Lantmännen Biorefineries AB.

Following the merger, which took place in several stages, the abovementioned operations will be carried out under the joint company name Lantmännen Biorefineries, with presence in Lidköping, Norrköping and Kimstad.

Please read more here.

Our team consisted of:

We have assisted CombinedX (publ), which through its wholly owned subsidiary CombinedX Professional Services, has acquired the business of M3CS AB. The acquisition took place through an asset transfer and entails that the business will be conducted under the existing name but with a new registration number.

The consultancy business M3CS AB engages around 80 consultants, with expertise and experience in implementing, managing, and supporting Infor’s business system M3 and the CloudSuite platform with associated integrations.

CombinedX is a knowledge company with the ambition to be a market-leading specialist company that helps companies and organisations take advantage of the opportunities of digitalisation. It delivers services through wholly owned specialist companies, each of which has market-leading technology and business expertise in its niche.

For more information, see the press release.

Our team consisted, amongst others, of:

We have assisted Jetpak Group AB (“Jetpak”) with the acquisition of BudAB AB (“BudAB”). BudAB has its base at Arlandastad-Stockholm, and the business is based on courier and distribution logistics mainly in the Stockholm and Central Sweden region, including logistic management at Arlanda Airport.

Jetpak offers solutions for both spontaneous transport needs and customized logistics. They are represented in more than 170 locations in the Nordics and in Europe.

Jetpak has a unique and flexible customer offering based on the availability of normally approximately 4,000 departures daily and an extensive distribution network with approximately 950 courier vehicles. This enables Jetpak to offer the market to deliver the fastest and most comprehensive same-day service. This can be further supplemented with a unique tailor-made next-day service for system-based transports.

For more information, please visit Jetpak Group.

TM & Partner’s team consisted of:

We have assisted PHM Sweden AB (“PHM”) with the acquisition of the Bredablick group (“Bredablick”). Bredablick is one of the top operators within technical and financial management of residential real estate and facility services in Sweden. The acquisition strengthens PHM’s position in Sweden as a national operator with extensive expertise and experience in the financial management, maintenance and technical management of residential properties.

PHM operates in about 70 locations in Sweden from north to south, via its 26 local and independent subsidiaries and circa 1,300 employees. With the acquisition of Bredablick, the number of PHM employees in Sweden will be close to 2 000.
Bredablick was founded in 2009 and has grown into one of the market leaders in Sweden. Bredablick’s services include various services related to technical and financial management of residential real estate as well as facility services.

For more information, please visit PHM Groups webpage.

Our team consisted of:

TM & Partners has advised RNB Retail and Brands AB (“RNB”) in connection with the sale of Brothers & Sisters. They holds all shares in Brothers AB, to the Norwegian investment company Jotunfjell Partners AS. The acquisition of Coala-Life AB (“Coala-Life”) through an issue in kind, and the conversion of RNB’s notes to unconditional capital contributions and shares in the company.

Jotunfjell Partners AS has a primary focus on Nordic retail, and owns, inter alia, the Swedish retail chain Pagelle.

Coala Life is a Swedish medtech company that focuses on heart diagnostics and digital health. The company has developed a portfolio of solutions based on the Coala, a patented and commercial service for remote monitoring and self-screening of heart sounds and ECG.

As a result of the transactions, RNB changed its business name to Coala-Life Group AB (publ) and its business activities to development, marketing and sale of medtech. In addition, a change of listing of RNB’s shares from Nasdaq Stockholm to Nasdaq First North Growth Market was carried out in connection with the closing of the transactions.

TM & Partners’ team comprised:

 

Juica produces and sells organic, additive-free, cold-pressed and unpasteurized fruit and vegetable juices under the brands Juica and Juicekultur. The company’s products are sold in the FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) and service sectors, to hotels, restaurants and catering business as well as through own and external e-commerce channels. For more information about the acquisition of Juica, see press release.

Beijing8 produces and sells dumplings and related products, including sauces, beverages and cooking utilities. The products are sold in the FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) sector and own restaurants in the Nordic region. In 2020, the company produced and sold over 6 million dumplings, making it one of the largest brands of dumplings in Europe. For more information about the acquisition of Beijing8, see press release.

TM & Partners’ team consisted of partners Vaiva Eriksson and Sandra Broneus and associates Philip Reznik, Tom Bovaller, Philip Bihl, Jacob Elovsson Hultin, Cecilia Bergman, Andreas Sahlstedt and Mark Gebert.

TM & Partners has advised the founders of Adtoox in connection with the sale of the company to global video ad management platform Peach.

Adtoox was founded in 2007 by Emil Brolin and Oskar Milton and delivers a wide range of services within the scope of ad distribution, research and online advertisement.

TM & Partners’ team consisted of Sten Hedbäck (Partner, M&A), Philip Reznik (Senior Associate, M&A), Tom Bovaller (Associate, M&A), Fredrik Gustafsson (Partner, Tech) and Lisa Ericsson (Counsel, Employment). Livingstone were financial advisers to the sellers.

Prolongation of Covid-19 support measures

Several Covid-19 support measures have been prolonged and will continue to apply during the spring of 2021, amongst others:

  • The short-time work allowance will continue to apply until 30 June 2021.
  • The restructuring support will continue to apply until April 2021. A prolongation to June 2021 is awaiting approval from the European Commission.
  • The Swedish state will continue to bear the employers’ higher costs for sick pay until April 2021.
  • The temporary abolishment of the requirement for employees to present a doctor’s certificate from sick day eight and onwards has already been prolonged until April 2021, as well as the abolishment of the qualifying deduction for sick pay (Sw. karensavdrag).

Several appeals regarding the short-time work allowance

The media has reported that the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth in several cases has not applied the law regarding short-time work allowance correctly and thereby made wrong decisions regarding allowances to companies during the pandemic. In at least 20 cases tried by the Administrative Court of Stockholm, the court has stated that the agency has not applied the law correctly and over 60 employers have had their appeal ruled in their favor. However, in a clear majority of the over 500 cases tried by the court so far, the court has ruled in favor of the agency. Over 5,000 appeals have been made to the Administrative Court of Stockholm and more can be expected.

Ruling from the Labor Court regarding the requirement to give notice of termination in person

In a recent case from the Labor Court, the court ruled that it was not reasonable to demand that the notice of termination, with mandatory information on actions to be taken in order to claim damages or invalidity, should have been given to the employee in person (as is the main rule). The court accepted that the employer had sent the notice in a registered letter to the employee’s last known address when the employee did not show up at the meeting with the employer because the employee had symptoms of Covid-19. Thus, the time limit had begun to run ten days after the employer had sent the registered letter to the employee, despite the fact that the employee did not collect the letter and thus did not receive any notice of action for invalidity. [AD 2021 nr 3]

Consequences of the employer not correcting misunderstandings regarding a termination

In a recent case from the Labor Court, the court tried whether an employee had been summarily dismissed or resigned voluntarily when she after a meeting with the managing director did not perform any work. The employee thought that she had been terminated during the meeting whereas the employer held that the employee had taken time off and thereafter did not show up for work. The court stated that where the employer has reason to believe that an employee perceives himself as dismissed, the employer must clarify the situation and correct any misunderstandings regarding the employment. The employer may not use any uncertainty or ambiguity to allow the employment to end. Since the employer had not corrected the misunderstanding, the court found that the employee had been summarily dismissed. Since there was not just cause for termination, the employer was obliged to pay damages in accordance with the Swedish Employment Protection Act. [AD 2021 nr 14]

If you would like more information or specific advice, please contact our L&E team.

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