Skulle hun bli syk i prøvetiden, vet hun nå hvem hun må ringe før hun skal jobbe.

This is a very common learner question.

Skulle hun bli syk is a more formal or slightly more written-style way of saying:

Hvis hun skulle bli syk
or more simply
Hvis hun blir syk

In English, it is similar to Should she become ill...

So this pattern is an inverted conditional:

• Hvis hun skulle bli syk = If she should become ill
• Skulle hun bli syk = Should she become ill

A few important points:

• skulle here does not mean past tense in the normal sense.
• It gives the sentence a more hypothetical, formal, or cautious tone.
• You will often see this kind of structure in written Norwegian.

So the beginning means something like:

• If she should get sick during the probation period
• Should she become ill during the probation period

Bli syk means become sick or get sick.
Være syk means be sick.

So:

• Hun blir syk = She gets sick / becomes sick
• Hun er syk = She is sick

In this sentence, bli syk is used because the idea is if she happens to fall ill during that period.

If you changed it to være syk, the meaning would shift a little:

• Skulle hun være syk ... = If she were sick ...

That would focus more on her state of already being ill, while bli syk focuses on the event of getting ill.

Prøvetid means probation period, usually at a job.

So:

• i prøvetiden = during the probation period

The ending -en makes it definite:

• prøvetid = a probation period
• prøvetiden = the probation period

It is definite because the sentence is talking about a specific probation period that both speaker and listener understand — most likely her probation period at this job.

This is because Norwegian is a V2 language in main clauses. That means the finite verb normally comes in the second position.

The first part of the sentence is a fronted clause:

Skulle hun bli syk i prøvetiden

After that comes the main clause:

vet hun nå hvem hun må ringe ...

Since the initial conditional clause takes the first position, the verb of the main clause, vet, must come next.

So:

• Hun vet nå ... = normal word order when nothing is placed first
• Skulle hun bli syk i prøvetiden, vet hun nå ... = after a fronted clause, the verb comes before the subject

This is exactly the kind of word order that often feels unusual to English speakers.

Because this is an embedded question, not a direct question.

Compare:

• Direct question: Hvem må hun ringe? = Who does she have to call?
• Embedded question: Hun vet hvem hun må ringe. = She knows who she has to call.

In embedded questions, Norwegian uses normal subordinate-clause word order:

• question word + subject + verb

So:

• hvem hun må ringe not
• hvem må hun ringe

This is very similar to English:

• Who does she have to call? = direct question
• She knows who she has to call. = embedded question

Må usually means must or have to.

So:

• hun må ringe = she must call / she has to call

In this context, it suggests necessity or obligation. If she gets sick, there is a specific person she is required to contact.

For learners, it helps to compare:

• må = must, have to, need to
• skal = will, shall, be going to, be supposed to

So in this sentence:

• må ringe = who she is required to call
• skal jobbe = when she is supposed to work

Both can be possible in Norwegian, but the nuance is slightly different.

før hun skal jobbe means:

• before she is going to work
• before she is supposed to work
• before her shift / before she is due to work

This fits very well in a workplace context. It sounds like she needs to call before a scheduled work period starts.

før hun jobber would sound more like:

• before she works or in some contexts
• before she is working

That can sound more general and less tied to a planned shift.

So skal jobbe is very natural here because it refers to something scheduled or expected.

Yes, the comma is natural and standard here.

The first part, Skulle hun bli syk i prøvetiden, is a subordinate conditional clause placed before the main clause.

Norwegian normally uses a comma between:

• a fronted subordinate clause
• and the main clause that follows

So the punctuation helps show the structure clearly:

Skulle hun bli syk i prøvetiden, vet hun nå hvem hun må ringe før hun skal jobbe.

Because each clause needs its own subject.

In this sentence, there are several clauses:

• Skulle hun bli syk i prøvetiden
• vet hun nå
• hvem hun må ringe
• før hun skal jobbe

Norwegian, like English, usually requires an explicit subject in each clause. So repeating hun is normal and correct.

Even though it may feel repetitive, it is not bad style here. In fact, leaving the subject out would usually be ungrammatical.

The sentence mixes forms, but the main meaning is about a present situation and a possible future event.

Here is the breakdown:

• Skulle hun bli syk: hypothetical/conditional form, referring to a possible future situation
• vet hun nå: present tense, she now knows
• hun må ringe: present-tense modal, she has to call
• hun skal jobbe: present-tense modal used for something scheduled in the future, she is going to work / is supposed to work

So the overall idea is:

• Right now, she knows what to do if she gets sick in the future.

That mixture of present forms with future meaning is very common in Norwegian.