Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Statare" in English language version.
The end of the 18th century witnessed the start of an agrarian transformation that would multiply the returns to agriculture, at the same time as breaking up the old peasant society. Concurrently, a new work organization was introduced on the larger estates. The old corvée system was gradually replaced with wage labour, and in the latter half of the century a special form of employment, the contract-work system (stat/ar/systemet), was introduced and survived until 1945.
Some autobiographies point out that while working together on the lord's demesne all were equal, but when the contract-worker approached the peasant's or crofter's farmstead, he was regarded as inferior. Such social status differences are also found when the autobiographies discuss marriage.
The fifth group comprised agricultural workers who were employed until further notice with cash wages and their own housing. They had roughly the same employment terms as industrial workers and corresponded to the modern norms. At the end of the 1930s this category was as large as the contract-worker group.
Three examples of duration of service are given from Tunbyholm at the end of the 19th century; farmhand-foreman 26 years, carpenter 36 years and stable groom 47 years.