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WORKING IN SWITZERLAND

Swiss politicians call for ‘lost’ public holidays to be replaced

Unlike in many other countries, public holidays which fall on a weekend disappear completely. With 2022 particularly hard hit, some in Switzerland are demanding a UK-style change.

Published: 26 April 2022 15:05 CEST
Zurich is one of the few Swiss cantons to give people a holiday on May 1st, although not in 2022. Photo by Tomas Jerabek on Unsplash
Zurich is one of the few Swiss cantons to give people a holiday on May 1st, although not in 2022. Photo by Tomas Jerabek on Unsplash

This weekend, May 1st – the global celebration of workers winning valuable and sometimes life-saving rights – falls on a Sunday, which means Switzerland’s workers will not receive a holiday in recognition. 

In fact, 2022 is not a great year for public holidays. New Year’s day was already lost to a weekend this year, while Christmas Day will also fall on a Sunday.

11 Swiss cantons have a holiday on May 1st, although none of these will be carried over to a working day in 2022. 

Which Swiss cantons have a public holiday on May 1st?

Several union representatives as well as Swiss politicians have called for a change in the rules. 

In total, 85 countries from all across the globe provide a compensation day if a day off falls on the weekend, including Belgium, Luxembourg, England, Ireland, Spain, Australia and Thailand. 

Switzerland’s unions have called for holidays on weekends to be carried over. 

Luca Cirigliano from the Swiss Confederation of Trade Unions told 20 Minutes such a change should be a priority. 

“We demand that public holidays that fall on a non-working Saturday or Sunday must be granted,” Syna Union Vice President Mandy Zeckra said on Tuesday. 

Zeckra said all Union employees receive a day off in lieu when a holiday falls on a weekend.  

Sibel Arslan (Greens), a member of the National Council, said the economy cannot function without workers. 

She told Swiss news outlet 20 Minutes that Labour Day should be a nationwide holiday and that Switzerland was “throwing employees blindly into a hamster wheel”. 

Another Green politician, Katharina Prelicz-Huber, told 20 Minutes she supported the move. 

READ MORE: Why dancing is banned on public holidays in Switzerland

Arslan formally asked Switzerland’s governing Federal Council in March of 2021 for public holidays which fall on a weekend to be carried over but was rebuffed. 

Then President Guy Parmelin rebuffed her approach, saying the Federal Council was not open to changing the law. 

The efforts have also seen resistance from the right-wing Swiss People’s Party. 

SVP councillor Barbara Steinemann said “there are people who are always looking for a reason not to work.”

Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter from Die Mitte told 20 Minutes “we have other problems right now,” while party colleague Leo Müller was against the idea of replacing holidays completely. 

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For members

WORKING IN SWITZERLAND

‘I thought it would be different’: What to expect from a seasonal job in Switzerland

While most foreign nationals who are employed in Switzerland work here long-term, others come specifically for seasonal work.

Published: 16 April 2024 12:35 CEST
'I thought it would be different': What to expect from a seasonal job in Switzerland

In an article published in foreign media on Monday, a South African woman relates her experiences of working in the Swiss Alps during the latest ski season.

Though she had great (and clearly unrealistic) expectations of her two short-stint jobs as a waitress in a ski resort, her hopes were dashed after she was fired from both, subsequently venting her anger on TikTok.

The litany of her complaints includes that her work “was exhausting” and that she and other seasonal personnel were “exploited”.

She even found it unfair that there were … “so many Swiss people”.

“Me not speaking German was really hard. I had to learn so many Swiss drinks. All the beers were in German, so there was a lot to learn.”

It is not clear what the woman thought her job in Switzerland, and in the German-speaking part at that, should legitimately entail, but she concluded that she is “so disappointed with Switzerland. I thought it would be completely different”.

All this brings up the question of what you should reasonably expect from a seasonal job.

But first: what is a ‘seasonal’ job?

As the name suggests, it is temporary, usually short-term work, performed at certain times of the year that are particularly busy for a given industry.

It includes extra help needed by businesses during peak periods — for instance, retailers hiring additional staff during the Christmas shopping season.

In Switzerland, seasonal (mostly foreign) workers are typically hired by winemakers during the grape harvest in early fall, or, as was the case with the South African woman, during the winter sports season.

In the latter case, as relatively few people live permanently in resort areas, there is a shortage of local employees to work in various jobs that are essential for tourism.

Tourists far outnumber the locals in Swiss ski resorts – which means “outsiders” must be hired for the efficient running of the local economy.

However, while the more “glamorous” jobs like ski instructors may be hard to get (sport instructors must have special qualifications and be certified), work in a service sector, which includes hotels, bars, and restaurants, is plentiful.

READ ALSO: How to find a job in winter sports in Switzerland 

What about summer jobs ?

They too are considered “seasonal” but would typically be filled by Switzerland-based students rather than people coming from abroad specifically for this purpose, as is the case with the grape harvesting and winter sports sectors.

In Geneva, however, this type of work has become scarce, though it is still available in most other cantons.

READ ALSO: Why it’s becoming more difficult to get a summer job in Geneva

Are seasonal employees really ‘exploited’, as the South African woman claimed?

Though Switzerland has no special regulations for seasonal workers, the usual labour rules and protections apply to them as well.

Like any other job contracts, short-term ones must also be in writing and outline the rights and obligations of both employer and employee.

However, if you think you are being treated unfairly in your seasonal (or “regular”) job, contact your employer in writing to express your position.

If that doesn’t help, your next course of action should be a union (if there is one) and, as a last resort, the cantonal civil court responsible for settling labour disputes.

How can foreign nationals apply for seasonal work permits?

Rules are determined by the candidate’s nationality – as is the case for “regular”, long-term employment.

This means that people from the European Union and EFTA (Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) can work in Switzerland for up to three months without  a permit (they must, however, declare their arrival in the canton within 14 days).

Rules for people from outside the EU / EFTA depend on how long they plan to work in Switzerland.

If it is up to three months, they must apply for a short-stay L permit.

For work contracts of up to four months, a D visa is needed. 

You can find seasonal work here. 

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