The suspension deduction: "You are punished for something you are not responsible for"

Storm, 16 months, pulls mother Kamilla Johansson's hair. The pasta gratin is eaten and it's almost time to sleep.

- He was enrolled in preschool in August, so now we have a whole new pool of bacteria to deal with, says father Dennis Johansson.

He is an after-school teacher at Möllevångsskolan in Malmö. Kamilla works as a special education teacher at a school in Copenhagen.

When one of them falls ill, the difference between the countries is clearly felt.

In Denmark, Kamilla Johansson receives full salary from the first day of illness. Dennis instead receives a full salary deduction on the first sick day and then sick pay of 80 percent of his salary.

For Dennis Johansson, it is difficult to accept.

- It will be a serious blow to the income. I and many of my colleagues feel that you are being punished for something you are not responsible for, he says.

According to a study from 2023, 12 of the EU's 27 member states have waiting list deductions in their health insurance systems. In the Nordic region, Sweden is alone in the model.

The question divides the political parties. S, V and MP went to the polls to scrap the qualifying deduction. C says no because it would involve large costs for business. Recently, party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist has nevertheless opened up to negotiating the issue in government negotiations, as long as the companies are not affected.

The SD wants, as the only Tidö party, to introduce a differentiated retirement deduction so that certain vulnerable professional groups avoid salary deductions.

The Riksdag's investigation service, Rut, estimates that employers' sick pay costs would increase by around nine billion kroner per year if the retirement allowance was abolished.

According to Svenskt Näringsliv, it is about considerably more - up to SEK 42 billion.

The interest organization has fought for the grace period to remain.

- There is no other issue that engages our member companies more than this one right now, said chief economist Sven-Olov Daunfeldt recently in an interview with DN.

According to the Swedish Confederation of Business and Industry, abolishing the waiting period would lead to more sick leave, more sick days and cases of illness.

In the other camp, the LO unions believe that the abolition of the qualifying period is a matter of justice.

After the pandemic, it has become easier for certain professional groups to work at home when they have a cold - and thus avoid qualifying periods.

- We don't have that luxury. It is difficult to carry out our work on Zoom, says after-school teacher Dennis Johansson in Malmö.

When he feels a little sick, he usually goes to work anyway.

- It is easier to struggle through a working day than to lose the money, he says.

Before the election, the retirement allowance was a matter of the heart for the Johansson family. He believes that it would be good for both the workers and the market if it were removed.

- The money that people don't lose would come back to the economy when you can afford to use the money you have, says Kamilla Johansson.

How do you see the business community's concern that sick leave would increase?

- There are always people who take advantage of the system, but it is about a few. Overall, I think the Swedish people have a good work ethic, says Dennis Johansson.

Lisa Laun is an adjunct professor of economics at Stockholm University and a researcher at IFAU, the Institute for Labor Market and Education Policy Evaluation. She thinks that the discussion about the Swedish system needs to be nuanced.

- The qualifying deduction hits certain groups harder, especially low-income earners. This does not mean that it must be scrapped, but there are reasons to question whether the system fits today's labor market, she says.

According to Lisa Laun, the deduction can reduce the short sick leave. But it can also cause more people to go to work sick, which increases the risk of the spread of infection.

- The grace period deduction is a form of deductible, and it can be designed in different ways. You don't have to have just one grace period, she says.

In the apartment in central Malmö, the Johansson family gets ready for a new working day. For Kamilla Johansson, it means a couple of hours of commuting to Copenhagen every day.

In Denmark, employees receive full salary or sickness benefit from the employer during the first 30 days of sickness absence.

She believes that the lack of retirement allowance means that Danish workers are more relaxed. She doesn't care much for the notion that people would be sick more often.

- I also go to work when I'm a little sick, even though I don't have to. It's about work ethic, she says.

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