The local governments have been sharply criticizing for having few or no employees with foreign backgrounds - despite state-supported appeals to all employers to integrate the foreign born and their children into Swedish society.

Earlier, private industry has also been sharply criticized for employing only native Swedes - sometimes not even calling in some one with a foreign-sounding family name for a job interview - even though the candidate may be highly qualified, have a Swedish university degree, and speak perfect Swedish since he or she was born here in this Nordic nation.

The most common professions where foreign-born are working in Sweden are hospital orderlies, assistant nurses, doctors, dentists and dental assistants.