Last week, Switzerland’s federal parliament voted in favour of adding an annual public holiday to celebrate democracy. This week, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), said the extra day off would cost the economy CHF 350 million, reported RTS.
The CHF 350 million sum was calculated by comparing the GDP in years when Christmas falls on a Sunday to years when it doesn’t.
However, the cost doesn’t not fall evenly on all businesses. A retailer that is forced to close for a day can make a simple cost calculation, although it’s not clear if the lost sales are actually lost or deferred. Businesses with longer billing cycles will find calculating the loss harder.
There is also the difficult to quantify counter argument of higher productivity after a day off. This may make sense for work that is more about inspiration than perspiration. It’s difficult to imagine someone mowing lawns for a living picking up their mowing pace sufficiently in the days following a break to make up for a lost day.
The only sector that can probably be sure of benefiting from an extra holiday is tourism.
More on this:
RTS article (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
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