The Violent Labor Market: Confrontations Between Striking Workers and Strike-Breakers in Sweden 1880-1939

The Violent Labor Market – Beyond the Myth of Consensus Sweden is often described as a country where labor disputes have been resolved through negotiations and compromises. But the history is more dramatic than that. Between 1880 and 1939, there were recurring violent confrontations between striking workers and strike breakers, sometimes with fatal consequences. The most well-known of these were the Ådal Events of 1931, when the military shot and killed five demonstrators, but this was far from an isolated incident. Despite these dramatic examples, violence in the labor market remains virtually unexplored. This project aims to change that by mapping where and when confrontations occurred, analyzing the methods used, and examining how these methods changed over time. We are doing this through a comprehensive study of archival material from police and court records. We also examine how strike breakers were portrayed in the labor movement’s press, what nicknames they were given, and how class, gender, and ethnicity influenced perceptions of them. By shedding light on the role of violence in labor market conflicts, the project challenges the established narrative of the “Swedish model.” Before World War II, the labor market was far from peaceful; rather, it was marked by fierce struggles over rights and survival. Our research offers a new understanding of Sweden’s modern history and shows that the path to consensus was far more conflict-ridden than we often believe. The project runs from 2027 to 2030 and consists of three sub-studies: two historical analyses of confrontations and a cultural-analytical study of the strike-breaker as a symbol—ultimately in the form of a dehumanized monster. The results will be published in international journals, a Swedish monograph, and an English-language anthology. The research team—Stefan Nyzell, Martin Ericsson, and Fredrik Egefur—has extensive experience in researching social conflicts and the history of the labor movement.