Tag Archives: Editor’s Choice

40% of workers currently aged between 50 and 64 would like to continue working beyond retirement age, according to a survey conducted by Deloitte. © Kurhan | Dreamstime.comSwitzerland’s growing demographic imbalance is not only putting pressure on Switzerland’s social security system but also reducing its pool of labour. According to UBS, by 2030, the Swiss labour market will face a shortfall of between 230,000 and 500,000 workers. Labour market participation decreases significantly...

Switzerland’s low unemployment rate is the envy of many EU countries. However, in the third quarter of 2019, Switzerland underperformed the EU. © Suriel Ramirez Zaldivar | Dreamstime.comRecent statistics show Switzerland’s overall rate of unemployment in the third quarter rose from 4.2% (Q3 2018) to 4.6% (Q3 2019) – these figures are based on the International Labour Organisation definition of unemployment. The lower measure typically used in Switzerland includes only those still...

While the latest statistics show a rise in the number of tourists visiting Switzerland over the summer, tourist numbers from some countries fell significantly. © Narith Thongphasuk | Dreamstime.comOverall, the number of visitors to Switzerland in June, July and August rose by 3.9% compared to 2018. However, the numbers from Saudi Arabia (-8.7%) and the UAE (-13.4%) were down significantly in 2019. Some tourism experts think high summer temperatures are to blame. Many middle eastern...

© Swisshippo | Dreamstime.com The amount of money paid by “rich” cantons to “poor” ones will rise by CHF 61 million to CHF 5.3 billion in 2020, according to a recent government press release. The only French-speaking canton paying will be Geneva. All of the rest will see the sums they receive rise compared to 2019. In 2020, Geneva will pay CHF 275 million, down slightly from the CHF 300 million it paid in 2019. In 2020, the canton of Fribourg will receive CHF 387...

The amount of money paid by “rich” cantons to “poor” ones will rise by CHF 61 million to CHF 5.3 billion in 2020, according to a recent government press release. © Swisshippo | Dreamstime.com The only French-speaking canton paying will be Geneva. All of the rest will see the sums they receive rise compared to 2019. In 2020, Geneva will pay CHF 275 million, down slightly from the CHF 300 million it paid in 2019. In 2020, the canton of Fribourg will receive CHF 387 million (CHF 381...

Last week, the government announced that it had shaved CHF 100 million off the cost of drug purchases from 1 January 2020. © Vitaly Iskakov | Dreamstime.com This week numbers obtained by RTS from Curafutura, a health insurance association, show drug spending rose CHF 420 million from CHF 6.9 billion to CHF 7 billion between October 2018 and September 2019 and the same period 12 month a year before. Over the last five years spending on drugs has risen 26%. Savings are not keeping up...

In September 2019, groups of people belonging to the environmental protest group Extinction Rebellion blocked two road bridges in Lausanne. Extinction Rebellion Switzerland’s Facebook cover photoLocal police cleared the bridges by removing, in some cases carrying, protesters away. On 7 November 2019, 117 of the people involved in the bridge protests were convicted and fined for breaking Switzerland’s penal code, according to RTS. One person was convicted of violence and the rest of...

After a legal analyis the government of the canton of Geneva has decided that drivers of the ride hailing service are employees rather than independent contractors, effectively banning Uber from operating under its current model. © Oleksandr Lutsenko | Dreamstime.com In an interview with RTS, Mauro Poggia, a lawyer and Geneva state councillor, said that Uber is a transport company and as such must employ its drivers. Employees are treated differently to contractors. One of the key...

Thomas Jordan, chairman of the Swiss National Bank (SNB), told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper recently that central bank interest rates might need to go further into negative territory. Thomas Jordan, Chairman of the Swiss National Bank Responding to growing criticism of negative central bank interest rates, Jordan said negative interest rates could continue and a further reduction is possible. The SNB did not introduce negative interest rates to harm people, said the SNB chairman....

© Tero Vesalainen Dreamstime.com Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) recently announced it had reduced the price Swiss healthcare providers and patients will pay for 257 drugs by 16.3%. These lower prices, which take affect on 1 December 2019, are expected to save CHF 100 million annually. The FOPH looked at the prices of 478 drugs and achieved price reductions on 257 (54%) of them. The government has promised to cut healthcare costs via a range of...