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IMMIGRATION

Migrant workers reportedly among victims of fatal elevator crash in Stockholm

The five people who died this week when a construction elevator crashed 20 metres to the ground in Sundbyberg, north of Stockholm, came from Sweden, Russia, Ukraine and Afghanistan, writes Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.

Migrant workers reportedly among victims of fatal elevator crash in Stockholm
An elevator crashed 20 metres at a construction site in Sundbyberg on Monday. Photo: Fredrik Sandberg/TT

Relatives named one of the victims as Anton Runsvik, 26, from Sundsvall.

“Anton had the biggest heart both on and off the rink. He was a humble, kind and calm guy, wise and mature for his age,” Aftonbladet quotes his local floorball club as writing.

The names of the other four have not been publicly revealed and they are still being formally identified, but Aftonbladet reports that there’s much that indicates that one of them was a young man from Afghanistan, who arrived as a child refugee a decade ago.

“He’s been working in the building industry and is now missing. Police have retrieved DNA samples from his apartment, among other things from his toothbrush,” an unnamed source told the tabloid.

A Russian national in his 50s, who first came to Sweden in 2011 and received a Swedish residence permit in 2017, is also believed to have died.

“He loved his work and liked Sweden a lot,” a friend of his told Aftonbladet.

The other two men came from Ukraine, according to the syndicalist trade union SAC.

“We have more than 300 Russian-speaking construction workers among our members. Immigrants are not valued as Swedes when it comes to salary, security or safety. If a Swedish builder earns 200 kronor an hour, an immigrant earns 95 kronor,” Pamela Otarola of SAC Stockholm told Aftonbladet.

“Ukrainian builders have been exploited for many years in Sweden. They arrived even before the war and sometimes work without food and pay.”

The construction elevator collapsed at a site for a 14-storey apartment building on Monday morning. Investigations are under way to determine what caused the accident and whether anyone should be held responsible. Some 50 builders were working at the site.

The victims were working for a subcontractor to the main construction company Andersson Company.

A total of 52 people have died in workplace-related accidents in Sweden in 2023, the highest number in a decade.

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WORK PERMITS

Sweden launches digital passport checks for (some) work permit applicants

In a new scheme by the Migration Agency, applicants for a Swedish work or student permit will be able to verify their passport digitally instead of having to travel to a Swedish embassy – but so far only if they come from one of the 23 countries involved in the pilot.

Sweden launches digital passport checks for (some) work permit applicants

“Some applicants will now be able to download an app, scan their passport and perform facial recognition to identify themselves for their residence permit applications for studies and work,” said Fredrik Larsson, from the Migration Agency’s foreign operations unit, in a statement.

Applicants who may be able to take part in the pilot scheme, including those who have already made an application in 2024 but haven’t yet shown their passport, will receive an automated email a few days after applying, containing a link to an e-service that’s valid for one week.

It means they won’t have to make in some cases long and expensive journeys to a Swedish embassy to have their passport checked. 

“The whole aim of the project has been to make it easier for applicants. Since it became a requirement to show your passport during a personal visit, more people have been forced to visit a mission abroad, which may be in another country,” said Larsson.

Freja eID Group AB, which is one of the companies that provide digital IDs in Sweden, is responsible for carrying out the check.

The new scheme is expected to benefit around 19,000 work permit applicants and 5,000 students a year from the following countries: USA, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, UK, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Chile, Singapore, Malaysia, North Macedonia, Georgia, Ukraine, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Albania, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The countries involved are all ones where people don’t need a visa to travel to Sweden, so some major work permit countries such as India are excluded. The Local has contacted the Migration Agency to ask if and when the pilot scheme might be rolled out to other countries.

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