Unions warn: EU set to grant AI companies access to Swedish data
LO, TCO and Saco have warned in a joint letter to the government that the EU is planning exemptions that would grant AI companies access to the personal data of Swedish citizens.
What happened?
The Swedish trade union confederations LO, TCO and Saco have sent a joint letter to the Swedish government. The unions are demanding that the government categorically reject EU proposals to grant AI companies broader access to personal data entered into their services. The unions stress that the unregulated use of employee data for AI model development risks leading to the surveillance of both workers and their families.
Key facts
| Publiceringsdatum | 30 september 2026 |
|---|---|
| Avsändare | LO, TCO och Saco |
| Mottagare | Sveriges regering |
”Oreglerat utnyttjande av arbetstagares personuppgifter för AI-utveckling och AI-användning bör aldrig vara ett alternativ och kan inte tillåtas.”
Why it matters
If AI companies are granted the right to use all input data for model training, sensitive information about employees could end up in the hands of foreign technology conglomerates. There is a risk that the collected data could subsequently be used for automated evaluation or workplace surveillance, creating significant privacy concerns and uncertainty regarding labour law protections.
Who is affected?
The statement concerns employees in both the private and public sectors who use AI tools in their daily work, as well as AI providers such as OpenAI. It also affects Swedish decision-making authorities and the government, which must take a position on EU proposals regarding data protection and AI.
Impact on the EU
Discussions are ongoing within the EU regarding how the AI Act and data protection legislation such as the GDPR should be applied to the training of AI models. The trade unions are urging the Swedish government to block proposals at the EU level that would relax requirements for AI developers to use input personal data.
What else you should know
The question of how employee and personal data is handled by AI services has become one of the most debated issues in connection with the rapid rollout of generative AI in workplaces. The unions' statement highlights a growing concern that employers and AI providers are exploiting legal grey areas to collect training data without explicit consent.
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