Tag Archives: Editor’s Choice

In 2019, Switzerland lost one place slipping from 5th to 6th place out of 180, according to the latest world ranking of press freedom by the organisation Reporters Without Borders. © Pavel Abramov | Dreamstime.com The change was largely driven by the stronger performance of Denmark, which moved up into 5th place. According to the report, the press in Switzerland continues to face economic pressure and to suffer from a worrying increase in ownership concentration linked to the digital...

A referendum aimed at rejecting changes to Swiss gun laws scheduled for 19 May 2019 could cause major disruption at airports in Zurich and Geneva if it succeeds, according to various newspapers. © Toxawww | Dreamstime.com If the vote is successful it might eventually lead to the exclusion of Switzerland from the Schengen area. If this happened, immigration staff at Swiss airports would need to check the passports of all those entering from and departing to other Schengen area countries. The...

A recent study by Geneva’s department of economic development (DDE) looks at the shopping habits of its residents and the residents of neighbouring Vaud and neighbouring France – an area including Nyon and parts of the French Ain and Haute Savoie regions. © Viorel Dudau | Dreamstime.com Every year, the residents of this greater Geneva region spend around CHF 7.2 billion francs on consumable items in physical stores. This money is spread across personal goods (19%), garden and DIY goods (6%),...

In 2018, 68.5% of the nation’s residents aged 15 or older was working, 1.5% more than in 2010. © Arturoosorno | Dreamstime.com This rise was largely driven by an increase in the percentage of women in the workforce. In 2010, 60.0% were working. By 2018, 62.9% were, a rise of 2.9%. On the other hand, the overall percentage of men working declined slightly (-0.1%) to reach 74.2% by 2018. Swiss versus foreignersOverall, foreigners were much more likely than Swiss to be working. In 2018, 76% of...

This week, Greenpeace activists protested against single-use plastic in front of Nestlé’s headquarters in Vevey, according to the newspaper Le Matin. [embedded content] One group of protesters carrying a plastic monster made from plastic waste that has been touring Europe after arriving in Rotterdam from the Philippines, demanded that Nestlé take back its plastic monster. Take back your monster #nestle pic.twitter.com/Obt6hpJPeX — Elsy (@elsy_n) April 19, 2019 Others carried large bags of...

This week, Swisscom became the first Swiss mobile phone company to switch on its 5G network, according to a press release. © Mykhailo Polenok | Dreamstime.com Swisscom spokesperson, Esther Hüsler, said that at midnight on Wednesday Swisscom flipped the switch to become the first Swiss operator to put its 5G network into service. It’s 5G network went live across 102 locations across the country, including most of Switzerland’s cities. The announcement comes a week after the parliament of the...

Switzerland is often assumed to have low unemployment. However, there are many countries in Europe with lower rates. © Miklmakmagnitka | Dreamstime.com There are several ways to measure unemployment. The official measure in Switzerland is focused on those officially registered as unemployed still collecting unemployment benefits, a measure that delivers a lower figure than the one calculated by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), which includes all those looking for work...

Testing commissioned by Blue Cross, a Swiss organisation focused on helping those with addictions, found toxic substances in the Iqos electronic cigarette produced by Philip Morris, according to the newspaper 20 Minutes. © Ilona Tymchenko _ Dreamstime.com Toxic isocyanates were released when the polymer filter in the device was heated to 100 degrees, a temperature significantly lower than the maximum of 350 degrees listed in the product’s specifications. Isocyanates, found in solvants,...

© Eziogutzemberg | Dreamstime.com In 2016, before the effects of taxes and welfare, the highest earning 20% of Swiss households made on average 40.8 times what an average household in the bottom 20 percent made, an inequality measure known as the S80/S20. However, after taxes and welfare, including low income support, health insurance subsidies, pensions and disability benefits, the same income ratio fell to 4.4....

© Sabine Katzenberger | Dreamstime.com Comparing 2018 to 2012, thefts in Switzerland fell by nearly half, according to the Federal Statistical Office. In 2012, there were a record 219,000 thefts recorded in Switzerland. By 2018, the figure had fallen to 112,000, a drop of 49%. Over the same period, all categories of theft with the exception of fraud were down. Car theft (-13%), bike theft (-20%), break-ins (-51%) and...