beskæftigelsen

Beskæftigelsen is a Danish term for employment or the state of being employed. In everyday language it refers to the body of people who perform paid work, whether on a full-time or part-time basis, within an economy. In its definite form, beskæftigelsen can denote employment as a whole or the employed population.

The word derives from the verb beskæftige, meaning to engage or occupy, with the suffix -else indicating a state or condition. The term is widely used in statistics, policy discussion, and media to describe the level of participation in paid work.

In statistical usage beskæftigelsen is usually measured as the number or share of people who are employed within the working-age population. Data are collected by Statistics Denmark and comparable across time and with other countries in the EU. The employment rate is a key indicator alongside the unemployment rate and the labor force participation rate. Distinctions are often made between full-time and part-time employment, and between different sectors and occupations.

Policy context: beskæftigelsen is central to Danish welfare and labor market policy. The concept is affected by education and skills, health, childcare and family leave arrangements, and by active labor market policies such as job training and wage subsidies. The Danish model of flexicurity aims to combine high employment levels with strong social security and active measures to help people return to work.

Notes: the term is used in official statistics, academic research, and public debate when discussing the Danish labor market and economic performance, the size of the employed population, and trends in work participation.