In a case involving a former unit commander in the Swiss Armed Forces, the Federal Court ruled that the law on equality does not apply to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
On Tuesday, Switzerland’s highest court rejected the appealExternal link of a homosexual man who claimed that the defense unit of the Swiss army did not extend his fixed employment contract because of his sexual orientation. In 2015, the plaintiff, who was a unit commander, applied for an extension before his contract ended but was not rehired.
The man claimed that he was not offered employment because of his sexual orientation. The defense unit denied discrimination, claiming that the position for which he applied no longer existed.
After an unsuccessful appeal at the Federal Administrative Court, the plaintiff took the case to Switzerland’s highest court.
The court dismissed the case on Tuesday asserting that a homosexual, who claims to have been discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation, cannot invoke the Federal Equality Act. It argued that the law only covers cases of direct discrimination because of a person’s gender.
In the ruling, the court wrote, “Both men and women can be homosexual. Discrimination on the grounds of homosexuality is not based on belonging to a particular gender.”
Greater protections for homosexuals
Late last year, the Swiss parliament made homophobia a criminal offence by extending the scope of the Criminal Code to include sexual orientation. The Code currently bans hate speech or discrimination against a person or group of persons on the basis of their racial, ethnic or religious affiliation.
Zurich authorities want ‘no taxpayer money for terrorists’
This content was published on
Zurich cantonal parliament has voted against recognising the state of Palestine. However, it provisionally supported a motion calling for “no taxpayers' money for terrorists”.
Swiss mechanical firms struggling since before Trump
This content was published on
Swiss mechanical engineering companies are said to be one of the main victims of Donald Trump's high tariffs. However, the industry has been struggling for years.
SNB head warns of side effects of negative interest rates
This content was published on
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) takes a critical view of the reintroduction of negative interest rates. "We are aware that the negative interest rate can have undesirable side effects, for example for savers and pension funds."
EU reports 400,000 asylum applications in first half of year
This content was published on
The number of new asylum-seekers within the European Union and Switzerland and Norway fell significantly in the first half of the year.
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.
Read more
More
As countries tighten transgender protections, will Switzerland follow?
This content was published on
As many countries introduce more legal protections for transgender people, Swiss politicians are examining introducing similar measures.
Court decision sparks party debate on same-sex marriage
This content was published on
Many Christian Democrats are no longer behind a 2016 initiative by their party because they are more open to same-sex marriage.
Why one party is opposing the criminalisation of homophobia
This content was published on
Last year, parliament approved legislation to criminalise homophobia. Now, a small conservative party wants to launch a referendum against it.
This content was published on
The ABQ association has been criss-crossing schools in cantons Bern and Fribourg for 20 years, talking about sexual orientation.
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.