Federal Councillor Alain Berset defended the role of the International Labour Organisation in the digital age in his opening speech at the organisation’s 100th meeting in Geneva. He also called for more efforts to achieve equal pay - a subject that is top of mind with a nationwide women’s strike on Friday, June 14.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA/jdp
Español
es
OIT: Suiza pide más igualdad salarial y cooperación social
In his speech at the opening of the centenary meeting, Berset praised the ILO’s tripartite model that brings together governments, employers and trade unions and called on countries to work together rather than call into question free trade.
With new challenges associated with the changing nature of work in the digital age, Berset told delegates that “more than ever, we need common standards to ensure fair competition between countries”. Member states are expected to adopt a “Centenary Declaration” that will define the future of work in the digital age.
Last year, the Swiss parliament passed an equal pay law mandating reporting of wages for companies with more than 100 employees. There has been very little movement on the gender pay gap in Switzerland with the latest figures revealing that men earned 19.6% more pay than female colleagues in 2016, compared to a 19.5% difference in 2012.
The ILO was founded in 1919, making it the oldest UN special organisation. More than 190 agreements and 200 recommendations on labor standards have been agreed since its founding
Blacklisted
Switzerland hasn’t been in ILO’s good graces lately. A couple of weeks ago, the country was put on the ILO’s blacklist for violating certain labour conventions. According to the ILO, employees active in trade unions are not sufficiently protected from being sacked in Switzerland.
While dismissal is against Swiss law if it is the result of legitimate trade union activity, the maximum compensation for wrongful termination is only six months’ wages, which the ILO finds insufficient. Some 40 countries are on the list, which is expected to be reduced to 25 countries during the meeting.
The ILO also ranked Switzerland at the bottom of the list when it comes to the wage gap between men and women in senior roles. In Europe and central Asia, only Italy, Kazakhstan and Israel pay even less for women managers than their male counterparts.
More
More
Geneva conference tackles workplace harassment and future jobs
This content was published on
What will tomorrow’s jobs look like? The centenary conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO) is seeking to understand that question.
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
Gotthard traffic queue hits 11km at start of holiday season
This content was published on
The start of the summer holidays saw a long traffic jam in front of the Gotthard tunnel on Saturday. Traffic jams between Erstfeld and Göschenen in canton Uri were up to 11 kilometres long early in the morning.
This content was published on
The water temperature of the Rhine River could rise by up to 4.2° degrees Celsius by the end of the century due to the warming planet, scientists warn.
This content was published on
The Federal Council wants to explore the possibilities of joining the European Union’s €800-billion rearmament programme without compromising Swiss neutrality.
Defence Minister Pfister stresses importance of Swiss mission in Balkans
This content was published on
During a visit to the Balkans region last week, Swiss Defence Minister Martin Pfister met Swisscoy peacekeeping troops in Kosovo.
Premiere for Swiss Air Force on French National Day
This content was published on
On July 14, the Swiss Air Force will take part in the traditional air parade in Paris to mark the French bank holidays with an F/A-18 fighter jet. This is a first for Switzerland.
Swiss launch competition for memorial to Nazi victims
This content was published on
The victims of Nazi Germany are to be commemorated on the Casinoterrasse in Bern. A competition will be held to determine what the site will look like.
This content was published on
The cantonal police of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland have arrested and convicted five cocaine dealers in Chur within a week.
This content was published on
Employees who are active in trade unions are not sufficiently protected from being sacked in Switzerland, says the International Labour Organization.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.