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POLICY TOPIC

Labour Market

Employment is at a historic high of 75.4% in 2024. Foreign nationals accounted for 45% of employment growth between 2013 and 2023. The flexi-job scheme has shown notable results for people with disabilities.

SUMMARY

Employment is at a historic high of 75.4% in 2024. Foreign nationals accounted for 45% of employment growth between 2013 and 2023. The flexi-job scheme has shown notable results for people with disabilities. Employment rate ages 15-64 (2024): 75.4% (Danmarks Statistik 2024). Foreign nationals' share of employment growth (2013-2023): 45% (De Økonomiske Råd E24).

KEY FIGURES

75.4%
Employment rate ages 15-64 (2024)
45%
Foreign nationals' share of employment growth (2013-2023)
DKK 23,064/month
Max. unemployment benefit (2024)

See statistics in the charts below ↓

EVIDENCE BASE

The Danish flexicurity model is internationally recognised for combining flexible hiring and firing with high social security and active upskilling.

ESTABLISHED CONSENSUSOECD Employment Outlook 2023

Employment in Denmark grew by roughly 400,000 people from 2013 to 2023. Foreign nationals accounted for 45% of this growth and serve as a cyclically sensitive buffer in the Danish labour market.

40% of people with significant disabilities are in employment in 2024, primarily through the flexi-job scheme. The share working fewer than 10 hours a week has risen from 1% (2012) to 10% (2024), reflecting a more inclusive labour market.

Trade union membership has fallen from roughly 80% in 1990 to roughly 66% in 2023 but remains far above the EU average of approximately 23%.

The employment rate for 15-64-year-olds is 75.4% in 2024 -- among the highest in the EU.

ESTABLISHED CONSENSUSDanmarks Statistik 2024

Automation and AI are expected to affect up to 40% of current jobs in Denmark by 2030, though historically technological shifts create new jobs.

STATISTICS AND DATA

Employment rate ages 15-64 (%)
02040608073 %75 %73 %75 %75 %20152018202020222024
CONTEXTThe employment rate for 15-64-year-olds shows the share of the working-age population in paid employment or self-employment. Denmark's 75.4% is very high by international standards and reflects the well-developed labour market with high female participation. The dip in 2020 is due to COVID-19. Three quarters of the employment increase from 2013-2023 is assessed to be structural -- i.e. lasting -- rather than merely cyclical.
Employed citizens with significant disabilities (%)
People with significant disabilities40 %Total population (ages 15-64)75.4 %
CONTEXT2024 data show that 40% of people with significant disabilities are in employment -- predominantly through the flexi-job scheme. VIVE's analysis highlights that access to flexible hours is crucial: the share working fewer than 10 hours a week has risen from 1% (2012) to 10% (2024). This illustrates that the active component of the flexicurity model works when individual conditions are accommodated. By comparison, the employment rate for the overall population is 75.4%, and higher still for people without disabilities.
Trade union density (% of employees)
02040608010080 %75 %70 %68 %66 %19902000201020182023
Source: FAOS 2023
CONTEXTTrade union density shows the share of employees who are members of a union. Denmark's decline from 80% to 66% follows a European trend, but it remains far above the EU average of roughly 23%. High unionisation is the foundation of the Danish model of collective bargaining rather than statutory regulation of pay and working conditions. The decline is primarily driven by growth in non-unionised sectors and young workers who do not join.

PARTY POSITIONS

Importance shows how central this topic is to each party's platform.

Core topic

Strong defender of the trade union movement and the collective bargaining system as the foundation of the Danish labour market.

Relevant

Wants to give businesses more flexibility and open up for more individual wage-setting.

Relevant

Wants to protect Danish workers against social dumping and limit cheap foreign labour.

Core topic

Wants to introduce a 30-hour working week and strengthen union rights. Wants a minimum wage level that allows a decent life.

Important

Wants to make the labour market far more flexible with fewer collective agreement requirements and more individual pay.

Relevant

Wants to preserve the flexicurity model but modernise collective agreements to fit today's working life.

Relevant

Wants to give employers more flexibility and reduce state and collective-agreement regulation.

Core topic

Wants to introduce a 30-hour working week and fights for strong union organisation and a significantly higher minimum wage.

Relevant

Supports the flexicurity model and wants more investment in upskilling and early intervention for the unemployed.

Important

Wants to protect Danish labour against social dumping and limit competition from low-wage countries.

Important

Wants shorter working hours and believes society should discuss the role of work and a basic income as a possible solution.

Relevant

Wants a free and less regulated labour market where pay and conditions are agreed individually.

SOURCES

[K1]OECD Employment Outlook 2023: Den danske flexicurity-model er internationalt anerkendt for at kombinere fleksi…
[K2]De Økonomiske Råd: Dansk Økonomi efterår 2024: Beskæftigelsen i Danmark steg med ca. 400.000 personer fra 2013 til 2023. Udenla…
[K3]VIVE 2025: Fleksibilitet fremmer beskæftigelsen for mennesker med handicap: 40 % af borgere med større handicap er i 2024 i beskæftigelse, primært via fleks…
[K4]FAOS (Forskningscenter for Arbejdsmarkeds- og Organisationsstudier) 2023: Andelen af fagforeningsmedlemmer er faldet fra ca. 80 % i 1990 til ca. 66 % i 20…
[K5]Danmarks Statistik 2024: Beskæftigelsesgraden for 15-64-årige er 75,4 % i 2024 – på niveau med de højeste…
[K6]Arbejderbevægelsens Erhvervsråd 2023: Automatisering og AI forventes at påvirke op til 40 % af de nuværende stillinger…
[S1]Danmarks Statistik 2024: Beskæftigelsesgrad 15-64 år (2024): 75,4 %
[S2]De Økonomiske Råd E24: Udenlandske statsborgeres andel af beskæftigelsesfremgang (2013-2023): 45 %
[S3]a-kasserne.dk 2024: Dagpengedækning (maks. 2024): 23.064 kr./md.
[P]DanPol: Party positions based on official party programmes and public statements.
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