Tag Archives: Personal finance

Many agencies and online platforms get hotels to sign contracts that stop them offering prices lower than those offered by the agency or platform. From 1 December 2022, it will no longer possible to legally enforce these arrangements as they will be deemed an unfair trading practice. © BiancoBlue | Dreamstime.comOn 16 November 2022, the Federal Council brought new regulations into effect aimed at ensuring that Swiss hotels are able to freely set their prices and offers regardless of any...

Switzerland’s recent vote on state pension reform on 25 September 2022, divided men and women, reported RTS. Photo by Vlada Karpovich on Pexels.comThe vote was split into two parts. The first asked whether the state pension age for women should rise from 64 to 65 to bring it into line with the pension age for men. The second part asked whether VAT should rise from 7.7% to 8.1% to fund a looming pension funding shortfall. According to an analysis by the survey firm gfs.bern, 64% of men...

Switzerland’s recent vote on state pension reform on 25 September 2022, divided men and women, reported RTS. Photo by Vlada Karpovich on Pexels.comThe vote was split into two parts. The first asked whether the state pension age for women should rise from 64 to 65 to bring it into line with the pension age for men. The second part asked whether VAT should rise from 7.7% to 8.1% to fund a looming pension funding shortfall. According to an analysis by the survey firm...

After construction workers went out on strike for two days in French-speaking Switzerland, construction workers protested in Zurich over hours and pay on 11 November 2022, reported RTS. Photo by Rodolfo Quirós on Pexels.comWith inflation in Switzerland running at 3%, construction workers are demanding higher pay. However, the construction industry has responded with an offer of better pay tied to higher maximum hours. The industry would like maximum weekly hours to rise to 58 and the...

After construction workers went out on strike for two days in French-speaking Switzerland, construction workers protested in Zurich over hours and pay on 11 November 2022, reported RTS. Photo by Rodolfo Quirós on Pexels.comWith inflation in Switzerland running at 3%, construction workers are demanding higher pay. However, the construction industry has responded with an offer of better pay tied to higher maximum hours. The industry would like maximum weekly hours to...

According to the bank Raiffeisen, a future rental housing crisis is likely in Switzerland as the home vacancy rate moves below 1% in 2024, reported 20 Minutes. © Jan Gajdosik | Dreamstime.comThe combined forces of higher construction costs and higher interest rates have reduced the number of homes being built, said the bank. This combined with the continued growth of the population and a trend towards more living space is expected to create a squeeze as growth in demand outstrips the rise...

© Jan Gajdosik | Dreamstime.com According to the bank Raiffeisen, a future rental housing crisis is likely in Switzerland as the home vacancy rate moves below 1% in 2024, reported 20 Minutes. The combined forces of higher construction costs and higher interest rates have reduced the number of homes being built, said the bank. This combined with the continued growth of the population and a trend towards more living space is expected to create a squeeze as growth in...

While checking statements from health insurers a number of people have noticed Covid tests that were never administered. One individual in St. Gallen discovered 30 Covid tests billed by a doctor in Vaud on their statement, reported RTS. © Yauhen Akulich | Dreamstime.comA spokesperson for Santésuisse, a health insurance association, said the organisation estimates that 1% of Covid tests have not been billed correctly and could be fraudulent. The total value of these potentially fraudulent...

Switzerland’s consumer price index (CPI) remained stable in October 2022 compared with the previous month, reported Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO) this week. Photo by Polina Tankilevitch on Pexels.comThis left year-on-year inflation at the end of October 2022 at 3%, the same level that it was at the end of September 2022. The stability of the index compared with the previous month is due to opposing trends that counterbalanced each other overall. Prices for gas, heating...

Recent data from Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show recent collective pay rises fall short of inflation. © Gfadel | Dreamstime.comSwitzerland’s key labour agreements between employers and unions included a nominal pay rise of 0.8% for 2022 and a 0.6% nominal rise in minimum wages, wrote the FSO on 31 October 2022. However, set against inflation of 3% over the year to 31 October 2022, pay is 2.2% lower in real terms. Sectors getting the biggest pay rises include...