When analysing what the concept of work has meant historically in Sweden, acomplex image of shifting meanings emerge. Labour has been given meaning andvalue to the individual as a tool of empowerment and self-reliance and to society asa way of financing the welfare state. There has also been a conflict in how to besthandle those who fall outside of the norm of labour. The history of the SwedishNew Work Strategy is a history of conflict regarding whose responsibility it is toensure the wealth and wellbeing of the persons in unemployment or on sick leave:the state, or the individual. In this study, we use Carol Bacchi’s (2009) method fordiscourse analysis to critically analyse how labour, unemployment and sick leaveis represented in documents from two governmental agencies with close ties to boththe state, the labour market, and the individual. We conclude that the currentdiscourse surrounding labour, unemployment and sick leave is centred around theNew Work Strategy and the norm of labour. The individual is categorised as apassive recipient of the governmental agencies’ programmes. The individual isrepresented as needing to be disciplined and controlled, shaped, and conformed tothe ideal of being employable and having the ability to work full time. The goals ofthe governmental agencies are represented to be minimising the usage of sick leavebenefits or unemployment benefits. Labour is also portrayed in the documents asthe only way of financing the welfare state, and as the foremost solution to socialexclusion. Analysing how problems with unemployment and sick leave isrepresented leads to realising that the language we use may construct and constrictthe way we as individuals and as social workers understand social problems. Thiscreates possibilities of thinking differently about what social problems arerepresented to be and how best to handle them.