An ageing population, migration and urbanisation are leading to challenges for both the labour market and the welfare sector in sparsely populated areas, in cities and municipalities with a declining population, and for peripheral regions. Society and the local labour market therefore needs to find new ways to utilise the skills that are available locally, in order to enable satisfactory services for its citizens in the long term. The gender segregated labour market has in Sweden (and elsewhere) been addressed as both a problem and a solution. A gender-segregated labor market is more vulnerable to global and national labor market changes, and traditional notions of who is suitable for different occupational sectors mean that it becomes more difficult to use the local workforce effectively in times of labor market changes. This is in line with studies that have shown a connection between an integrated labor market and regional development. Countering traditional gender career choices has been highlighted as a solution, both for businesses and for public service. Is a gender equal labour market the future of peripheral regions, and why are we not already there? 

This presentation is based on three different studies that in different ways engage with the labour market in Swedish peripheral regions, from a gender and intersectional perspective.