Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Thursday
No easing of Swiss citizenship rules on the horizon; inflation significantly lowers Swiss wages; and other news in our roundup on Thursday.
National Council doesn’t want to ease access to the Swiss citizenship
Even though a new initiative was recently launched seeking to shorten residency requirements for foreigners in order to quality for Swiss citizenship, on Wednesday the National Council rejected a bid by the Liberal Green party to lower the hurdles to Swiss citizenship.
Most MPs turned down four motions asking for "fair rules in naturalisation,” preferring to maintain the current system which requires foreign nationals to live in Switzerland for 10 years before being able to apply for Swiss passport.
Also, the minimum length of stay in communities before the possibility of naturalisation — typically between two and five years — should not be reduced either, the MPs decided.
READ ALSO: The new bid to ease Swiss citizenship laws
Swiss unemployment rate falls below 2 percent
At the end of May, Switzerland’s jobless rate dropped to 1.9 percent, approaching historic lows —1.7 percent recorded in 2001 — according to the State Secretariat for the Economy (SECO).
The rate has decreased across all age groups and in all canton.
However, when looked at individually, the French-speaking Switzerland has the highest unemployment rate, with Geneva at the top —3.6 percent — followed by Vaud (3.1 percent).
Still, these numbers are below the 5-percent average recorded in 2021.
Now for the not-so-good news…
Swiss wage losses amount to 2,000 francs per year
Even though many employees in Switzerland got pay raises in 2023, inflation is eating up these increases, the Swiss Trade Unions association (USS) said.
It is warning that the declining purchasing power is endangering the country’s economy.
According to its calculations, based on the wage index of the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), in many branches, real wages have fallen to the level at which they were a decade ago.
The real wage loss now amounts to around 2,000 francs per year for an average salary of 6,600 francs a month. “It’s quite a large sum for many people,” said Daniel Lampart, USS’ chief economist.
Italian mafia members may no longer be able to enter Switzerland
The National Council has accepted a motion on Wednesday which demands that Bern bans “as a preventive measure” the entry into Switzerland of mafiosi criminals convicted in Italy.
The infiltration of these people into Switzerland has reached “a worrying level,” the motion states.
“The measure proposed here has already been applied in part, but it must be applied systematically and in coordination with the cantons in order to increase the level of protection and to prevent people who have already been convicted in Italy of belonging to the Mafia from moving their activities to Switzerland.”
The Federal Council said it is against this motion because the federal police “already regularly pronounces entry bans and expulsions against people close to or involved in organised crime of the mafia type,” according to Justice Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider.
The Council of States will have to weigh in on this issue.
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]
Comments
See Also
National Council doesn’t want to ease access to the Swiss citizenship
Even though a new initiative was recently launched seeking to shorten residency requirements for foreigners in order to quality for Swiss citizenship, on Wednesday the National Council rejected a bid by the Liberal Green party to lower the hurdles to Swiss citizenship.
Most MPs turned down four motions asking for "fair rules in naturalisation,” preferring to maintain the current system which requires foreign nationals to live in Switzerland for 10 years before being able to apply for Swiss passport.
Also, the minimum length of stay in communities before the possibility of naturalisation — typically between two and five years — should not be reduced either, the MPs decided.
READ ALSO: The new bid to ease Swiss citizenship laws
Swiss unemployment rate falls below 2 percent
At the end of May, Switzerland’s jobless rate dropped to 1.9 percent, approaching historic lows —1.7 percent recorded in 2001 — according to the State Secretariat for the Economy (SECO).
The rate has decreased across all age groups and in all canton.
However, when looked at individually, the French-speaking Switzerland has the highest unemployment rate, with Geneva at the top —3.6 percent — followed by Vaud (3.1 percent).
Still, these numbers are below the 5-percent average recorded in 2021.
Now for the not-so-good news…
Swiss wage losses amount to 2,000 francs per year
Even though many employees in Switzerland got pay raises in 2023, inflation is eating up these increases, the Swiss Trade Unions association (USS) said.
It is warning that the declining purchasing power is endangering the country’s economy.
According to its calculations, based on the wage index of the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), in many branches, real wages have fallen to the level at which they were a decade ago.
The real wage loss now amounts to around 2,000 francs per year for an average salary of 6,600 francs a month. “It’s quite a large sum for many people,” said Daniel Lampart, USS’ chief economist.
Italian mafia members may no longer be able to enter Switzerland
The National Council has accepted a motion on Wednesday which demands that Bern bans “as a preventive measure” the entry into Switzerland of mafiosi criminals convicted in Italy.
The infiltration of these people into Switzerland has reached “a worrying level,” the motion states.
“The measure proposed here has already been applied in part, but it must be applied systematically and in coordination with the cantons in order to increase the level of protection and to prevent people who have already been convicted in Italy of belonging to the Mafia from moving their activities to Switzerland.”
The Federal Council said it is against this motion because the federal police “already regularly pronounces entry bans and expulsions against people close to or involved in organised crime of the mafia type,” according to Justice Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider.
The Council of States will have to weigh in on this issue.
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]
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.