Hadia Tajik

Hadia Tajik (born 18 July 1983) is a Pakistani-Norwegian jurist, journalist and politician from the Labour Party.

She served as Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion from 2021 to 2022.

Hadia Tajik was born on 18 July 1983 in the village of Bjørheimsbygd in Strand, Rogaland, to Mohammad Sarwar Tajik (born 1947) and Safia Qazalbash (born 1948), immigrants from Pakistan in the early 1970s.

After completing Bjørheimsbygd Primary School as one of only seven pupils, she attended Tau Lower Secondary School between 1996 and 1998 and later Strand Upper Secondary School from 1998 to 2001.

Tajik was active in politics from an early age, and was the leader of the Strand chapter of the Workers' Youth League (AUF) from 1999 to 2002, before becoming deputy leader of the Rogaland AUF from until 2003.

She has a bachelor's degree in journalism from Stavanger University College, after which she studied human rights at Kingston University in England from 2004 to 2005, earning a Master's degree.

She served as an advisor for the Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion, Bjarne Håkon Hanssen, from 2006 to 2008.

In 2008 she temporarily held the position of advisor to the Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg.

Subsequently, from 2008 to 2009, she served as political advisor to the Minister of Justice, Knut Storberget.

While serving under Storberget, she was accused of being involved in the so-called hijab-affair.

The incident occurred when the Ministry of Justice withdrew a proposal to allow female police officers to wear the hijab in the service, as a result of fierce uproar.

The proposal was authored by Tajik and fellow state secretary Astri Aas-Hansen, and the final decision was allegedly made by them without consulting Storberget.

The allegations were never confirmed, but when the ministry announced its decision, the media felt the minister left the impression that the two women were to blame.

Later, in 2009, she again served as an advisor for the Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion.

In March 2022, Gunnar Stavrum said that Tajik was the Støre Cabinet's minister that had accomplished the most, and who had opened for changes that are popular with the left wing - such as prohibiting temporary service agencies and rental of labour.

On 14 September 2009, Tajik was elected Member of Parliament for the Norwegian Labour Party.

Representing Oslo, she was listed as candidate number six on the Labour ticket, which was considered a safe seat.

During her tenure in parliament, she was a member of the Standing Committee on Education, Research and Church Affairs as well as the Election committee.

She previously served as Minister of Culture from 2012 to 2013.

She was 29 years of age at the time and became the youngest minister to serve in the Norwegian government.

She is the first Cabinet member that is a Muslim.

She subsequently enrolled in and studied law at the University of Oslo receiving her Master of Law degree in 2012.

On 21 September 2012, as part of a larger cabinet reshuffle, prime minister Jens Stoltenberg announced that Tajik would become the new Minister of Culture.

She replaced Anniken Huitfeldt who became the new Minister of Labour and Social affairs.

At the time, she was the youngest ever to become a minister in Norway (at 29), and her appointment made her the first Muslim to serve in the Norwegian cabinet.

She has been nominated in second spot on the Oslo Labour party ballot for the 2013 Norwegian parliamentary election.

After the 2013 parliamentary elections and the fall of the Labour-led government, Tajik retained her seat in the Storting from Oslo.

She was subsequently named as leader of the Standing Committee on Justice, which is considered one of the most prestigious posts in the Storting.

She resigned in the fall of 2013, along with the rest of the cabinet following the electoral defeat in the 2013 parliamentary elections.

Tajik is an enthusiastic user of social media, and an avid supporter of E-books, and as a result she was often called Norway's "first digital Minister of Culture".

On 14 October 2021, Tajik was appointed minister of labour, social inclusion and integration in Støre's Cabinet.

A few days after her appointment, Tajik reiterated that the government would be open to put in special rules regarding hiring in certain workplaces.

She also said it was important for the government to do it in a proper and thorough way, while also conducting law work beforehand.

After pilots that were terminated by SAS start to demand their jobs back following the COVID-19 pandemic, Tajik stated: “We have seen that workers who are well qualified experience that the company creates a new subsidiary, where they have to apply for their position again.

It is not a neat way to do it, and a situation that we want to avoid.

The SAS conflict raises this issue”.

The pilots and remaining staff were unable to get their jobs, and were required to apply for their original jobs again.

She was also the party's deputy leader from 2015 until 2022.

Tajik has served as a Member of Parliament representing Rogaland since 2017, and Oslo from 2009 to 2017.

In 2019, she was appointed spokesperson on financial policy and deputy parliamentary leader.