Trade unions and collective bargaining agreements in Sweden

Among Swedish employees, it's pretty uncontroversial to be a member of a trade union; Sweden has a strong history of worker solidarity and quite some pride in the so called Swedish model, which I'll explain in detail another time, but on a high level it means that a lot of the things about the labour market are not regulated in law (which can flip-flop based on which government is in the office and might not be flexible enough for every industry there is) but rather negotiated about directly between the trade unions and employers organizations every few years, which ensures more stability and fewer strike days.

In this post: what does a trade union do for you as a member, what does it do for you as an employee at a place where a collective bargaining agreement applies (even if you're not a member), how much does it cost to join a union, how to choose a union, what's the difference between a trade union and an a-kassa, what's the connection between the unemployment insurance from an a-kassa and the income insurance from a trade union, and of course a bunch of links for further reading or reference.