När arbetet är slut, går jag hem.

Because Swedish has a verb-second rule in main clauses.

In this sentence, När arbetet är slut is placed first. When something other than the subject comes first in a Swedish main clause, the finite verb must come next:

• När arbetet är slut, går jag hem.
• literally: When the work is finished, go I home

So:

• first position: När arbetet är slut
• second position: går
• then the subject: jag

If you start with the subject instead, you get normal subject-verb order:

• Jag går hem när arbetet är slut.

Both are correct.

Here, när means when.

It introduces a time clause:

• När arbetet är slut = When the work is finished / When work is over

A useful contrast is:

• när = when (for something that happens or is expected to happen)
• om = if

So here när is used because the speaker treats it as something that will happen, not as a condition.

Arbetet is the definite form of arbete.

• ett arbete = a job / a piece of work / work
• arbetet = the job / the work

Swedish usually attaches the definite article to the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like the.

So:

• arbete = work
• arbetet = the work

In this sentence, arbetet means a specific piece of work, or the work situation being talked about.

Är slut is a very common Swedish expression meaning is finished, is over, or has ended, depending on context.

Word by word:

• är = is
• slut = end / finished / over

So:

• arbetet är slut = the work is finished / the work is over

This is completely natural Swedish. In English, we often use finished, but Swedish often uses slut in this kind of expression.

Compare:

• Filmen är slut. = The movie is over.
• Pengarna är slut. = The money is gone / used up.

Hem means home, and after verbs of motion it often works without a preposition.

So:

• gå hem = go home
• komma hem = come home
• åka hem = go home / travel home

This is similar to English, where we also usually say go home, not go to home.

So går jag hem is perfectly normal.

No, the comma is often optional here in modern Swedish.

You may see both:

• När arbetet är slut, går jag hem.
• När arbetet är slut går jag hem.

Both are understandable, and many modern texts prefer no comma before the main clause unless the sentence is long or the writer wants a pause.

So the comma is not a grammar rule you must always follow here.

Because När arbetet är slut is a subordinate clause, and Swedish subordinate clauses do not use the same inversion pattern as main clauses.

Inside the subordinate clause, the word order is normal:

• arbetet = subject
• är = verb
• slut = complement

Then the main clause follows:

• går jag hem

So the sentence has two parts:

1. När arbetet är slut = subordinate clause
2. går jag hem = main clause

The inversion happens in the main clause because the subordinate clause is in first position.

Yes, absolutely.

This version is also natural:

• Jag går hem när arbetet är slut.

The meaning is basically the same. The difference is mainly focus:

• När arbetet är slut, går jag hem.
  This emphasizes the time first.
• Jag går hem när arbetet är slut.
  This begins with I go home, so it sounds a bit more neutral in many contexts.

Learners should get used to both patterns.

Swedish often uses the present tense for future meaning when the time is clear from context.

So:

• När arbetet är slut, går jag hem.

can refer to a future situation, even though går is present tense.

English often does something similar:

• When the work is finished, I go home
  or more naturally
• When the work is finished, I’ll go home

Swedish does not need a special future form here. The time expression När arbetet är slut already makes the timing clear.