I think a CBA could make sense for Klarna, but not necessarily for Spotify.
Separately: A company with a CBA is a red flag to me. I think that CBAs and unions is what have kept tech salaries artificially low here, compared to e.g. US tech salaries.
You are free to work for companies without a CBA in Sweden, such as most companies under 20 employees.
However I have seen way too many of my developer peers fall for this ”CBA bad” plot. The result is often bad total compensation where e.g. pensions is not nearly as good as with a CBA. There are of course exceptions, but you really have to do your homework.
If you want higher compensation in Sweden you probably want to be a standout performer early in your career. Then once you’ve built a good network you can pivot to running your own consultancy business and charge good rates.
It is also not impossible to get local employment at a company with presence in the US and eventually transfer there and get that high US tech salary. (But you might be in for a surprise what the cost of living actually is in the US, especially if you need healthcare or daycare and education for any kids.)
Finally tech salaries can be pretty good in Sweden if you provide good value to your employer, can argue for that, and is ready to jump ship every now and then.
What I believe keeps salaries low at some workplaces in Sweden is our reluctance to talk and compare our compensation with our peers. There are many devs here that provide good value yet does not know their market rate.
Where does the money in tech companies in Europe go? In the US, despite tech being one of the best paying working class jobs, the execs, shareholders etc make a significantly more amount of money than the workers.
How much profit/revenue does the average engineer in Klarna bring vs, say square in the US?
I think a CBA could make sense for Klarna, but not necessarily for Spotify.
Separately: A company with a CBA is a red flag to me. I think that CBAs and unions is what have kept tech salaries artificially low here, compared to e.g. US tech salaries.