Wanja Lundby-Wedin
Encyclopedia
Wanja Elisabeth Lundby-Wedin (born 19 October 1952 in Enskede
, Södermanland
, Sweden
) has been the President of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation
( or LO) since 2000. From May 2007 until May 2011, she was the President of the European Trade Union Confederation
.
, Lundby-Wedin studied to become assistant nurse, and started to work at Danderyd hospital north of Stockholm. There, she got her first trade union assignment, as union liaison officer for the Swedish Municipal Workers' Union
. In 1981 she was employed as union representative at the Stockholm branch of the union, and in 1987 she became Head of the Department for Environmental Issues at its national headquarters. In 1994 she became Vice President of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation and at the confederation's congress in September 2000 she was elected President, thereby becoming the first women on that post.
, ETUC. She thus became the first female president of the ETUC as well as the first ETUC president from Sweden. In her acceptance speech she emphasised her support for solid welfare systems and criticised the migration and refugee policy of the European Union
.
. In 2006, she was mentioned in the media as one of the possible candidates to lead the party after Göran Persson
resigned the party leadership following the defeat in the 2006 parliamentary election. She did not show any public interest in the post, and told journalists she considered Mona Sahlin
, who later received the post, a good candidate, although she refused to name a favourite. In the final months before the leadership election her name was no longer generally mentioned in the discussion.
Enskede
Enskede may refer to*The districts of Gamla Enskede in Enskede-Årsta-Vantör borough, Stockholm*Enskededalen, a district of Stockholm's Skarpnäck borough*Enskede gård in Söderort, Stockholm...
, Södermanland
Södermanland
', sometimes referred to under its Latin form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a historical province or landskap on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanland and Uppland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea.In Swedish, the province name is...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
) has been the President of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation
Swedish Trade Union Confederation
The Swedish Trade Union Confederation , commonly referred to as LO, is a national trade union centre, an umbrella organisation for fifteen Swedish trade unions that organise mainly "blue-collar" workers...
( or LO) since 2000. From May 2007 until May 2011, she was the President of the European Trade Union Confederation
European Trade Union Confederation
The European Trade Union Confederation is a trade union organization which was established in 1973 to represent workers and their national affiliates at the European level....
.
Trade union career
After having worked as a nursing auxiliary at Högdalen hospital in southern StockholmStockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Lundby-Wedin studied to become assistant nurse, and started to work at Danderyd hospital north of Stockholm. There, she got her first trade union assignment, as union liaison officer for the Swedish Municipal Workers' Union
Swedish Municipal Workers' Union
The Swedish Municipal Workers' Union is the largest trade union in Sweden with 570 000 members as of 2005, it was created 1910. It is commonly referred to as Kommunal.The majority of members are employed by varying local level municipalities....
. In 1981 she was employed as union representative at the Stockholm branch of the union, and in 1987 she became Head of the Department for Environmental Issues at its national headquarters. In 1994 she became Vice President of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation and at the confederation's congress in September 2000 she was elected President, thereby becoming the first women on that post.
President of the ETUC
On 25 May 2007 Wanja Lundby-Wedin was elected the President of the European Trade Union ConfederationEuropean Trade Union Confederation
The European Trade Union Confederation is a trade union organization which was established in 1973 to represent workers and their national affiliates at the European level....
, ETUC. She thus became the first female president of the ETUC as well as the first ETUC president from Sweden. In her acceptance speech she emphasised her support for solid welfare systems and criticised the migration and refugee policy of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
.
Role in the Social Democratic party
In the capacity of President of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation, Lundby-Wedin is also a member of the Executive of the Social Democratic PartySwedish Social Democratic Party
The Swedish Social Democratic Workers' Party, , contesting elections as 'the Workers' Party – the Social Democrats' , or sometimes referred to just as 'the Social Democrats' and most commonly as Sossarna ; is the oldest and largest political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1889...
. In 2006, she was mentioned in the media as one of the possible candidates to lead the party after Göran Persson
Göran Persson
Hans Göran Persson was the Prime Minister of Sweden from 1996 to 2006 and the leader of the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1996 to 2007. Conceding defeat in the September 2006 general election, he announced that he would resign as party leader, and Mona Sahlin was elected to succeed him as...
resigned the party leadership following the defeat in the 2006 parliamentary election. She did not show any public interest in the post, and told journalists she considered Mona Sahlin
Mona Sahlin
Mona Ingeborg Sahlin is a Swedish politician and the former leader of the Swedish Social Democratic Party.Sahlin has been a Member of Parliament, representing Stockholm County, from 1982 to 1996 and again since 2002. She has also held various ministerial posts in the Swedish government from 1990...
, who later received the post, a good candidate, although she refused to name a favourite. In the final months before the leadership election her name was no longer generally mentioned in the discussion.
Other assignments
Lundby-Wedin has also held the following posts:- ITUC (International Trade Union Confederation], member of the executive committee and deputy member of the steering committee
- Council of Nordic Trade Unions, member of the executive committee
- President of the insurance company FolksamFolksamFolksam is one of the largest insurance companies in Sweden. The company headquarters are located in Stockholm. Folksam consists of the two mutual insurance companies Folksam sak and Folksam liv...
- non-life insurances - Board member of AFA Insurance
- Board member of AMF Pensions