Employment law

Societal prosperity and economic sustainability depend on high employment. In the Long-Term Perspectives Report on the Norwegian Economy (2024), the value of total labour input is estimated at 74% of national wealth, compared with 2% for petroleum wealth. Participation in working life is also of great importance for the individual, both as a source of economic security and for personal development. A labour market that is inclusive and flexible helps to secure prosperity and welfare.

Labour law is a branch of contract law, but with significant distinctive features due to disparities in power between the contracting parties. One legal inequality lies in the employer’s managerial prerogative. Factual inequality may manifest itself in differences in professionalism and economic resources. To redress the imbalance of power, the legislator has intervened with mandatory legislation to protect employees, including requirements that termination by the employer must be objectively justified, and prohibitions against set-off against wage claims. Power imbalances may also be mitigated through collective agreements (“tariff agreements”), negotiated between employees’ and employers’ representative organisations.

Working life is in constant change, which also affects labour law relationships. Among other things, employer responsibilities are becoming fragmented through the division of organisational units, and tasks that were previously performed by the undertaking’s own employees are now often carried out by agency workers or through the purchase of services from other companies. Various forms of more “loose” attachment to working life are on the rise, including triangular employment relationships such as temporary agency work and work assignments mediated through digital platforms. Such forms of attachment may lower the threshold for individuals from marginalised groups to enter the labour market, while at the same time creating challenges with regard to protection against dismissal and collective agreements.

International influence

Norwegian labour law is highly internationalised. EU law in particular influences Norwegian labour law through the EEA Agreement. EU labour law sets minimum standards for employee protection, such as prohibitions against discrimination and protection of wage claims in the event of employer insolvency.

However, other areas of EU/EEA law are also significant for Norwegian labour law. The common labour and services market within the EEA has led to increased mobility, placing pressure on Norwegian wages and working conditions. The requirements of free movement of services, including the rules on the posting of workers, limit the scope for Norwegian legislators and labour market organisations to impose requirements on wages and working conditions for work performed in Norway. Issues of choice of law and jurisdiction, which also have an EU and EEA law dimension, arise more frequently than before as a result of increased cross-border mobility of workers and employers.

In addition, international human rights have gained increased importance for Norwegian labour law. Economic and social human rights conventions impose requirements relating to the working environment and working conditions, wages, and protection against dismissal. Civil and political rights may also be relevant in working life, including the right to freedom of association, the right to privacy, and freedom of religion and expression.

Labour law, anti-discrimination law and social security law

Labour law is closely linked to anti-discrimination law, which prohibits unjustified or disproportionate differential treatment. The prohibitions against discrimination in working life cover, among other grounds, gender, pregnancy, disability, age, religion, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, political opinion, and membership in a trade union.

Labour law is also closely linked to social security law, which concerns public assistance and financial compensation in various life situations such as unemployment, pregnancy and childbirth, care for children, illness and injury, disability, and old age/pensions.