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Ongoing project

Alternative work arrangements and worker welfare (ALTWORK)

Project period 2021–2025
Project nr. 10481 // NFR: 314267
Project leader Marte Strøm

Project Aim

The aim of this project is to examine ongoing changes in alternative work arrangements in Norwegian working life since 1995. We will analyze the consequences for employee welfare and inequality, the effect of deregulation on work participation, wages and trade union membership, and the ongoing developments in the legal framework.

Project Approach

In the first part of the project, we will use linked register data and the Labor Force Survey (LFS) data as a new source to examine the development in alternative work arrangements over time and consequences for employees' pay and working conditions.

In the second part of the project, we will study the importance of labor market regulation for the use of alternative work arrangements - and the consequences of deregulation. We will examine whether changes in regulation have affected the proportion of workers with alternative work, and whether these changes have affected the degree of trade union and wage development in different parts of the income distribution.

In the third part, we will look at key aspects of the legal framework: the development of the concept of worker in EU law and the scope of fundamental human rights that can potentially provide protection to workers with alternative employment contracts.

Project Bank – The Research Council of Norway

See also

The Norwegian Institute for Social Research has a number of projects that investigate teams related to atypical labour markets. See, among others:

Privacy Policy Guidance

This project utilizes personal data from individuals who are difficult to contact for the purpose of providing individual information. The data is processed for research purposes, and the legal basis for the processing is the public interest. The project involves the use of ordinary personal data and special categories of personal data, including data revealing health data, racial or ethnic origin and trade union membership. The data is obtained from the following sources: Statistics Norway (SSB) and national data collections. In collaborative research projects, datasets may also be shared with external project participants and their affiliated institutions.

The legality and privacy implications of the personal data processing have been assessed prior to the commencement of the project, which adheres to ethical guidelines for research. The Institute for Social Research is the data controller for the project.

Individuals who can be identified in the dataset have rights and may lodge complaints regarding the processing. Please feel free to contact our Data Protection Officer, the project manager, or the Norwegian Institute for Social Research if you have any questions or require guidance.

Master thesis

Riise, Olav (2022). Å være eller ikke være outsourcet - hva har det å si for lønna? [Master thesis, University of Oslo]. DUO vitenarkiv. http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-97615

Sun, Yumeng (2021). Temporary Work and Immigrant Labor Market Opportunities - An Empirical Analysis of a Temporary Work Reform. [Master thesis, University of Oslo]. DUO vitenarkiv. http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-93688

Participants

Erling Barth Research Professor +47 930 91 410 Send e-mail
Sara Cools Research Professor +47 984 96 736 Send e-mail
Trond Flaarønning Senior Research Fellow +47 479 04 013 Send e-mail
Maria Forthun Hoen Senior Research Fellow +47 476 20 350 Send e-mail
Marte Strøm Research Professor +47 408 85 333 Send e-mail
Mirjam Wentzel Senior Research Fellow +47 468 74 555 Send e-mail
Simen Markussen (Frisch Centre)

Publications

  • Flaarønning, Trond (2024). Union decline through extension of collective agreements? British Journal of Industrial Relations. doi: 10.1111/bjir.12832. Full text in Research Archive
  • Andenæs, Mads & Bekkedal, Tarjei (2022). The reach of jobseeker rights to free movement: On the complementary relationship between primary and secondary law. Oslo Law Review. 9(1), p. 4–25. doi: 10.18261/olr.9.1.1. Full text in Research Archive

View all works in NVA

View all works in NVA

Research topics: labour market, welfare
Published Oct. 15, 2021 1:17 PM - Last modified June 29, 2026 2:09 PM