Every year Luzern receives around 9.4 million visitors, or roughly 25,000 a day, according to a university study. Tourism is putting a strain on the city, bringing traffic to a standstill and creating crowds in public spaces. In addition, many visitors arrive on buses, tour the town, and leave without spending a night, which generates […]
Swiss apprenticeships – too many places, not enough takers
Figures on unfilled apprenticeship places show the difficulty of matching supply and demand in the labour market. This year there were 12,000 unfilled apprenticeship positions in Switzerland. Switzerland’s apprenticeship model, which helps match workers’ skills with employer demand, is one driver of Switzerland’s low unemployment (4.9%) – 2018 ILO basis. Switzerland has highest underemployment in […]
Switzerland has highest underemployment in Europe
In 2018, 830,000 people in Switzerland were unable to find the work they wanted, according the Federal Statistical Office. While 243,000 were looking but not immediately available and 231,000 were unemployed, most (356,000) were underemployed – working but unable to find as many hours of work as they’d like. The additional hours sought by underemployed […]
Swiss central bank under pressure as franc rises
Yesterday, the Swiss franc reached its highest level against the euro in two years. The CHF/EUR exchange rate reached 1.097 on 24 July 2019, a rate not seen since early 2017. Upward pressure on the franc is partly being driven by expectations of interest rate cuts by eurozone and US central banks. In addition, the […]
UBS warns of a looming shortage of workers in Switzerland
The Swiss bank UBS estimates there could be a shortfall of 500,000 workers in Switzerland in the coming 10 years as the baby boomer generation retires. However, the bank predicts the shortfall will not be even across all industries. Some sectors are expected to stagnate. Workers in these industries might find it harder to find […]
Swiss exports to the US significantly exceed those to Germany for the first time
According to an analysis by the Swiss broadcaster RTS, Switzerland’s reliance on EU exports has declined in recent years. Over the first quarter of 2019, for the first time, exports to the US exceeded those to Germany by more than CHF 1 billion reaching CHF 15.7 billion. Exports to the US have risen from 8.3% […]
Switzerland has highest percentage of millionaires
A generation ago millionaires were relatively rare. These days it is fairly easy to rub shoulders with one. According to a report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) there were 22 million US$ millionaires worldwide in 2018. One driver of the rising number of millionaires is inflation. A million dollars isn’t worth what it once […]
Switzerland number one for expat pay and stability
In 2019, Switzerland came top overall in a ranking of destinations for expatriates to live and work, moving up from eighth last year. Singapore, which had held the top spot for four years in the HSBC’s list of the best countries for expatriates, dropped to second place. Switzerland scored highly on salaries (1st), stability (1st), […]
Animals mistreated on 13% of Swiss farms
Switzerland’s Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO) recently published the results of its farm inspections in 2018. 35% of the 10,647 inspections were done without warning, a percentage above the 10% minimum. 87% of farms were found to be operating on or above minimum Swiss animal welfare standards, while 13% were below the minimum. […]
Swiss parliament insists EU deal return to negotiating table
As the 30 June 2019 expiry date for Swiss-EU stock market equivalence approaches, the National Council, Switzerland’s parliament, has given a clear mandate to extend negotiations over the nation’s relationship with the EU. The negotiations, which began in 2014, are centred on the Framework Agreement, an arrangement designed to replace the patchwork of deals Switzerland […]
