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TODAY IN SWITZERLAND

Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday

Find out what's going on today in Switzerland with The Local's short roundup of the news.

Published: 14 July 2021 08:06 CEST
Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday
SWISS adapts gender-neutral greeting. Photo by Swiss.com

Swiss health officials fear an increase in hospitalisations

The rate of coronavirus-related hospitalisations is relatively low right now.

However, the Covid-19 Task Force issued an alert about a probable increase in hospitalisations linked to the fast-spreading and highly contagious Delta variant, which now accounts for nearly 80 percent of cases in Switzerland.

The Task Force based its forecast on the experience of the United Kingdom, where the Delta variant has been predominant for some time.

Since vaccination coverage is lower in Switzerland that in the UK (42 percent versus 52 percent), hospital admissions here are expected to increase sharply in the coming weeks

READ MORE: Delta variant responsible for nearly 80 percent of new cases in Switzerland

About 67 percent of Geneva residents have Covid immunity

Some 67 percent of the Geneva population has developed antibodies against coronavirus, according to a study conducted by the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG) and the University of Geneva (UNIGE).

In half of the cases, this immunity is due to infection and in the other half to vaccination.

In December, only 22 percent of Geneva had Covid immunity, so this increase is a positive development.

Among people 75 years and older, immunity reaches 95 percent, but it is lower in younger age groups.  

For the study’s authors, however, the immunity level remains too low.

Zurich Airport struggles to deal with fake Covid certificates

The number of forged health passes at the Zurich Airport is growing, as more and more people travelling abroad is increasing steadily.

The airport lacks the resources to check the authenticity of all the certificates, but said that obtaining a falsified document is becoming increasingly easy online, even though the Federal Office of Informatics and Telecommunications claims the document is tamper-proof and no signs of a hacker attack have been spotted.

UPDATED: How to get Switzerland’s Covid-19 health pass

SWISS introduces gender-sensitive greetings

Following the lead of its mother company, Lufthansa, the national flagship carrier is also phasing out its old “Ladies and gentlemen” greeting and using gender-neutral “Dear guests” instead”.

The decision resulted from a wide-ranging discussions  focusing on “valuing all passengers.”

“The crews are required to choose a form of address that appeals to all passengers”, the airline said.

EXPLAINED: Why is Switzerland neutral?

Also, SWISS is the first airline flying out of Switzerland with sustainable aviation fuel, which company CEO Dieter Vranckx called “a milestone for Swiss aviation”.

If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]

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TODAY IN SWITZERLAND

Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday

Why your money deposited in a bank won't go as far; Swiss army knife is not going to be as multi-functional as before; and other news in our roundup on Tuesday.

Published: 7 May 2024 08:32 CEST
Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday

The number of cross-border workers in Switzerland has grown

At the end of March, there were nearly 400,000 G-permit holders employed in Switzerland — that is 4.3 percent more than during the same period in 2023.

This is what emerges from new data published on Monday by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).

A little more than half of this workforce (57.4 percent) comes from France. Over 23 percent live in Italy, and 16.2 percent in Germany.

Over the past five years, the number of cross-border commuters has grown by 21.8 percent, FSO reported. 

READ ALSO: Who can work in Switzerland but live in a neighbouring country? 

Swiss banks cut interest rates on savings
 
After the Swiss National Bank (SNB) cut its interest rate by quarter point, from 1.75 to 1.50 percent, in March, the expectation was that returns on savings would dwindle as well. 

This is what has been happening for the past month, Roland Bron, director of VZ consulting company, said in an interview on Monday. 

Since the SNB’s announcement, about 10 Swiss banks have already reduced interest rates on savings accounts, and “we expect others to follow this policy as well,” he said.

New Swiss army knife will have no…knife

The legendary manufacturer of the Swiss army knife, Victorinox, is working on a ‘pocket knife’ without a blade. The increasing safety regulations have prompted the company to make this drastic change.

“The blade creates a weapon image in some markets,” said company CEO Carl Elsener in an interview on Monday.

This is not the first time that the company has been confronted with the fact that the blade of its iconic pocket knife is seen as a possible weapon. After the terrorist attacks in the USA on September 11, 2001, sales of army knives fell by over 30 percent overnight, according to Elsener.

“This event showed us that we must not become dependent on a single business area,” he said.

READ ALSO: Do Swiss soldiers really use the army knife? 

Is coronavirus making a comeback in Switzerland?

A new Covid variant, KP.2, has recently been detected, and is currently spreading in the Unites States.

It appears to have higher transmissibility compared to previous Omicron sub-variants.

This in itself is not surprising as Covid viruses are constantly evolving and mutating.

However, Swiss health officials say that this particular variant has not, to date, been detected in Switzerland.

“The situation is being monitored closely,” the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) pointed out, adding that epidemiologists “consider the risk of a larger wave in the near future to be low. However, a more precise assessment cannot yet be made.” 

If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]

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