Upcoming employment updates - Scandinavia

Norway

• Abolition of company-specific age limits. From 1 January 2026, the legal basis for company-specific age limits of 70 years is abolished. The main rule will be that the age limit can be at the earliest 72 years. There is an exemption opening for an age limit lower than 72 years being set if it is "necessary for health or safety reasons" and "objectively justified and not disproportionately intrusive". As this is a narrow exception, the main rule will be applicable for most companies, and in our assessment, it is highly unlikely for white-collar or office workers to meet the criteria for an age limit lower than 72 years.
   
• Clarification of requirements for psychosocial work environment. From 1 January 2026, the Working Environment Act § 4-3 requirements regarding the psychosocial working environment, is amended to clarify requirements for how employees' work shall be organized, planned and carried out so that the psychosocial work environment factors in the enterprise are fully adequate. The amendment clarifies existing obligations and does not introduce any material changes but is rather made to ensure that the psychosocial working environment factors are not forgotten in the systematic HSE work. Among the psychosocial factors that must be taken into account are unclear or conflicting requirements and expectations at work, and emotional demands and burdens in working with people.

Denmark

• ID card requirement on large construction projects. A bill is planned to introduce mandatory ID cards on construction projects with a contract value of DKK 100 million or more for all workers on-site. The initiative is a part of an intensified fight against social and pay dumping and aims to make on-site control more effective for authorities. The mandatory ID card is to contain both identification and role-related details (e.g., name, photo, nationality and function-related information).
   
• Work injury reporting: reduced administrative burden. The 2026 legislative programme includes a proposal to ease the reporting obligation for workplace accidents, so notification is triggered after three days of absence rather than one. The change is expected to apply from 1 July 2026. While this will reduce administrative burdens for Danish employers, internal incident procedures and health & safety logs will still need to ensure proper prevention and follow-up.
   
• Amendment to the Act on Vocational Education and Training. The Danish Government proposes an amendment intended to ensure faster case processing in the Danish Disputes Board (Tvistighedsnævnet) for apprentices who have been subjected to sexual harassment. The bill will provide a legal basis for prioritising such cases over other matters, so affected individuals receive a more prompt clarification and rulings in cases before the Disputes Board.

Norway

• Waiver of employment protection for the company's top executive. The Supreme Court is hearing a case regarding termination of employment for an employee who has waived their employment protection. The case concerns a municipal director (the highest-ranking executive in the county, who is not elected) who waived their employment protection under the Working Environment Act § 15-16 in exchange for severance pay. The main question is whether special procedural requirements and requirements regarding objectivity can be imposed when terminating employment for top executives. This may limit the employer's right to terminate such employment relationships.
   
• Employee's possibility for/legal interest in suing pension providers. The Supreme Court will be hearing whether an employee can sue the pension provider directly to have the calculation basis for pension adjusted upward. The employee is 55% disabled and claims that the pension provider's terms are discriminatory. The court of appeal dismissed the lawsuit because the employee lacked legal interest. The pension agreement is only between the employer and pension provider, so even if the employee prevailed, the judgment would not bind the employer. The court of appeal's conclusion was therefore that the employee should have sued both parties jointly.

Denmark

• Scope of coverage of the Danish Workers’ Compensation Act. The Danish Appeals Permission Board granted an insurer to appeal the Danish Eastern High Court’s judgment of 4 June 2025. The case arises from a traffic incident where a bus driver was rear-ended at high speed by a minibus and, after checking his own passengers, rushed to assist injured passengers in the minibus. The authorities recognised both a neck injury and a psychological stress reaction as an occupational injury and treated the entire sequence under the general employee coverage rule. The insurer argues that the rescue-related psychological element should instead be assessed under the special rescue provisions, which would open access to state reimbursement. The High Court upheld the City Court’s approach by majority, but with a dissent emphasising legislative intent to separate rescue attempts from the underlying employment activity. The Supreme Court now has a chance to clarify the boundary between these two protective tracks. The hearing has not yet been scheduled but is expected to take place in 2026.