In this call for proposals you can apply for two-year or three-year project grants. The aim of the call is to promote good working conditions and is given within the framework of the national research programme on working life operated by Forte. A total of SEK 39 million is reserved for the years 2024–2026.

Focus areas: Promoting good working conditions

The way workplaces are organised are influenced by trends with, for example, various forms of management and the design of physical workplaces. Technological development creates new possibilities for organising and managing work. There are several different ways of organising and undertaking work, including newer ones made possible by digitalisation, which can have various consequences on working environment, terms, efficiency and competitiveness. It is a challenge to promote good conditions and terms of employment.

This call is funded by the ten-year national research programme on working life operated by Forte. The programme aims to increase our understanding of how we create a well-functioning working life, but also how we can increase the societal impact of research results.

Forte has identified several high-priority challenges in the field of working life for which the need for knowledge is great. The challenges and strategies for how the challenges can be met with research are described in the strategic agenda for the national programme on working life research. This call shall contribute to challenge 2: Promoting good working conditions, and the applications must focus on one of the strategies described below:

  • Improving the prerequisites and conditions for organising and undertaking work considering different forms of employment.
  • Developing organisation and management with the aim of improving working conditions and efficiency.
  • The significance of digital technology to an efficient and flexible working life linked to people’s conditions and needs.

Read more about the strategies and the identified challenges in the strategic agenda for the national research programme on working life.

Collaboration and Agenda 2030

Forte encourages an interdisciplinary and/or a multi-disciplinary approach in the applications. Forte also sees a need for and excellent opportunities for collaboration in research to increase relevance and utility. Furthermore, research should include a gender perspective when applicable. The research question will determine what is relevant in each specific case.

Fortes’ work should contribute to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. This call is part of that effort. Therefore, the research resulting from this call is expected to be relevant to several of the parliamentary goals that form the core of the Swedish work on Agenda 2030, such as The occupational safety and health strategy and The gender equality policy goal.

For more detailed information about the call, see the attached document “Information about the call”.

About the grant

Grant type: Project grants. Project grants aim to support one or more researchers to carry out a defined research project.

Grant length: 2 or 3 years

Budget limit: For the entire grant period (1 July 2024–30 June 2027) you can apply for a maximum of SEK 3 million for two-year projects and SEK 5 million for three-year projects. Please note that the maximum amount includes so-called indirect costs. Applications that exceed the specified limit will be rejected.

Eligibility requirements: To apply for a project grant you must have obtained a doctoral degree no later than the date of the call closing. Already being a project leader for a Forte-funded project is no obstacle to applying in this call. The main applicant does not have to be employed by the administrating organisation at the time of application (read more about the administrating organisation below) but must be employed by the administrating organisation when the project period begins and throughout the duration of the project, unless otherwise agreed upon by Forte and the administrating organisation.

Restrictions: You may only submit one application as the main applicant in this call.

The administering organisation must have an account

To be able to apply for a grant, a Swedish university or another research funding body must administrate the funding and have an organisational account in Prisma. The administering organisation should apply for this in due time via Prisma.

Read more about Forte’s criteria for administering organisations.

Time plan

The call opens: 15 November 2023 10:00 CEST
Deadline for applications: 18 January 2024 14:00 CET
Forte’s board decides on funding: June 2024
Decisions are published: A few days after Forte’s board decision
Project start: 1 July 2024