Background
Olsen was born in Kragerø as a daughter of a mechanic and a housewife.
politician member of the Parliament of Norway
Olsen was born in Kragerø as a daughter of a mechanic and a housewife.
She took commerce school in 1969, and does not have higher education, but worked as an office clerk in the newspaper Telemark Arbeiderblad from 1969 to 1990. In the municipal council of Kragerø she has only been a deputy member, from 1979 to 1983. She served as a deputy representative to the Norwegian Parliament from Telemark during the terms 1985–1989 and 1989–1993.
She was elected as a full representative in 1997, and was re-elected in 2001, 2005 and 2009.
She sat on a different Standing Committee during each of her four parliamentary terms. She did not stand for re-election in 2013 because of cancer.
She died from this disease in December 2013 at Marienlyst in Kragerø.
She was a member of Telemark county council from 1983 to 1999, serving as deputy county mayor from 1990 to 1995. She has chaired the county party chapter, and been a member of the Labour Party national board.