Humaniststudenten, prekariatet och jakten på ett anständigt liv

What does “prekariatet” mean in Swedish?

Prekariatet (“the precariat”) is the Swedish word for a class of workers stuck in precarious, low-paid, insecure jobs. The term was popularized by British economist Guy Standing in the late 2000s and crossed into Swedish political vocabulary. In Sweden, it shows up in debates about humanities students, freelancers, and gig workers chasing ett anständigt liv (“a decent life”).

This clip plays the irony: a Swedish humanities student declares herself part of prekariatet while admitting she has fonder (mutual funds), a sailboat, and a wealthy father who owns a major company. Swedish comedy loves this kind of self-aware bourgeois lament.