It has been almost a year since Social Democrat Ann-Sofie Hermansson left politics in Gothenburg under great drama. She was appointed group leader for the delegation group in February last year. A little later, she also quit as chair of the Social Democrats' municipal council group.
Since then, she has been largely unemployed, except for the assignment as a state investigator for the Ministry of Justice. An assignment she got a month ago.
The wind has turned- It's not a full-time job and I have to be able to pay the rent, says Ann-Sofie Hermansson (S) to SVT Nyheter Väst during Friday night.
But now the wind has turned for the former top politician, who has now become a cleaning worker and drives a truck. She did her second working day on Friday.
- It's great fun! I've been missing workmates. Now I am really tired in the body after many jumps in and out of the truck.
How do people react when you come and take care of their garbage?
- This morning there was a man who wanted to talk about the West Link and who thought we had misunderstood the handling of it and some other things. A critical Gothenburg citizen. But the conversation ended with a warm hug, says Ann-Sofie Hermansson.
Her new workmate Gustavo Galindo, on the other hand, had no idea that he was working with a former top politician in the social democracy.
"No, I had no idea who she was," he says, laughing. I stopped watching TV ten years ago because it was mostly bad news, he says.
"A heavy job"How do you think she can do the job then?
- She's doing well. It is a heavy job and the compost we collected today weighed more than the 15 kilos that the bags can weigh. People have been cooking more for Christmas now.
He thinks it is funny that people recognize his colleague when they go out for garbage.
- I don't know her as a politician but as a person, and she is absolutely wonderful.