Switzerland among worst in the world for childcare support
Swiss daycare costs are among the most expesnive in the world.
Keystone
Switzerland has one of the most expensive childcare systems in the developed world and also gets bad marks on parental leave, according to a report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Swiss voters decided last year to introduce ten days of paternity leave (UNICEF advocates six months), while mothers have been entitled to 14 weeks paid leave since 2005. But this still leaves Switzerland just one rung off the foot of the UNICEF table for this benchmark.
Only the United States, which offers no nationwide statutory entitlement to maternity or paternity leave, performs worse.
The cost of crèches and other forms of childcare in Switzerland is also deemed prohibitively expensive. “In Ireland, New Zealand and Switzerland, a couple with an average income would need to spend between a third and a half of one salary to pay for two children in childcare,” the report said.
The Swiss government and cantons say they are looking into providing more daycare places at a more reasonable cost. Access to childcare facilities across the world has been restricted by enforced coronavirus closures, the UNICEF report notes.
In 2019 the Federal Statistical Office said that raising two children in Switzerland (through all stages of childhood) costs at least half a million francs.
During the same vote last November that introduced Swiss paternity leave, voters also turned down a proposal to introduce more tax breaks for families.
Pre-school education
Switzerland does achieve higher marks in the UNICEF study for giving children access to quality education at pre-school level. Here, Switzerland is ranked in a respectable 18th position.
“To give children the best start in life, we need to help parents build the nurturing and loving environment that is so critical to children’s learning, emotional well-being and social development,” said Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director.
“Government investment in family-friendly policies, including childcare, ensures parents have the necessary time, resources and services they need to support their children at every stage of their development.”
Popular Stories
More
Foreign Affairs
In Switzerland four out of ten people have a migrant background – who are they?
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?
Porrentruy mayor comments on Swiss pool ban controversy
This content was published on
The mayor of the Swiss town of Porrentruy, which has been in the headlines in neighbouring France after restricting access to a pool to locals after a spate of anti-social behaviour, says he has received much support in recent days.
Swiss universities to release multilingual AI programme
This content was published on
This summer researchers at Swiss universities will make available a large language model (LLM), an AI programme trained on vast amounts of data, developed on public infrastructure.
This content was published on
After a one-year test phase, Zurich's cantonal police are introducing an online police station. Demand is high and the response from the public has been positive.
This content was published on
Children in Switzerland have been ranked fourth for wellbeing in a report published on Thursday by UNICEF, but the findings for all nations are cause for concern.
Swiss voters approve paternity leave, bury family tax breaks
This content was published on
A two-week paternity leave passed with strong support, while more tax deductions for families with children failed at the ballot box.
This content was published on
The Swiss will vote on September 27 on whether to introduce two weeks of paternity leave. Why is Switzerland so late in this?
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.