Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
The national postal service, Swiss Post, is in the news today – for two reasons.
Firstly, its decision to shift 200 jobs to Portugal has been criticised, especially because when it opened its site in Lisbon in 2023, the firm said it would not offshore any jobs. Secondly, Swiss Post has been the subject of a parliamentary debate about postal coverage – politicians want to save the possibility of delivery to every home.
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The House of Representatives has devoted a special session to the so-called “forever chemicals” – PFAS. Parliamentarians meanwhile want to maintain postal delivery to all homes, while the Senate is in favour of the principle of a non-violent upbringing.
On Tuesday, the House of Representatives accepted a motion calling on the government to set limiting values for PFAS. These substances, widely prevalent in the environment, can be harmful to human health. The motion also calls for restrictions on the manufacture and use of products that may contain them.
Another key decision: deputies voted to maintain postal delivery to all homes in the country. In doing so, they opposed a reform which wants to limit delivery to areas with at least five houses per hectare. The Senate, meanwhile, has approved a draft law that calls on parents to raise their children without resorting to violence.
Yesterday, the House of Representatives agreed to regulate the salaries of directors of major banks. Bonuses should no longer be paid in the absence of commercial results, deputies say. The Senate approved a government proposal to make higher education more attractive, in particular by introducing new degree titles.
The Swiss postal service is relocating 200 jobs to Portugal, Tamedia’s German-language newspapers revealed on Tuesday. Unions are critical.
The postal service plans to create 200 jobs specialising in IT at its Lisbon site, opened in 2023. At the same time, it will cut the same number of jobs in Switzerland. The firm will also stop prioritising the advertising of new vacancies in Switzerland.
“This is the only way we can guarantee the necessary know-how and stay competitive in the face of increasing cost pressure,” a Swiss Post spokeswoman told Tamedia papers. She also cited the shortage of skilled labour as a reason for the move. The company expects to have around 500 vacancies in IT over the next five years.
Unions are concerned about the decision. Syndicom is demanding that no relocations take place at all. “It is hardly in the interest of the Swiss state, as the owner of Swiss Post, for postal secrecy to be guaranteed from Portugal or for the e-voting technology to be managed there,” said its spokesperson.
US President Donald Trump attended the US Open final on Sunday at the invitation of the Swiss watchmaking group Rolex. Rolex’s CEO, Jean-Frédéric Dufour, spent several hours with Trump, CH Media reports.
Jean-Frédéric Dufour got what Swiss Economics Minister Guy Parmelin did not: a tête-à-tête with the American president. Together in the Rolex box, they watched Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz win the final of the US Open on Sunday. It was a delicate meeting, given that the brand’s watches have been subject to 39% US import duties since August 8.
The White House declined to comment on why the president accepted the invitation. Nothing has meanwhile emerged about the discussions between the two men. But for Dufour’s, at least, Sunday’s meeting can clearly be counted as a success.
Rolex is not the only renowned company to seek the favour of the US president. In the hope of obtaining a political dig out, certain companies are multiplying their attentions. The Wall Street Journal recently headlined that “Tech CEOS take turns praising Trump at White House Dinner”.
Over the past decades, a bakery has closed almost every week in Switzerland, according to Swiss public broadcaster, SRF. Among other things, traditional establishments are suffering from competition from imported pastries.
On Monday, the announcement of the bankruptcy of Limmatbeck group bakeries sent shockwaves through Zurich and Aargau. The group had six sites, two cafés and a large number of clients in the catering trade. However, the case is indicative of a national trend: every year, almost 50 bakeries go under.
Financial difficulties, location issues, a lack of new generations taking over family firms –the reasons for the closures are varied, according to Claudia Vernocchi from the Swiss Association of Bakers and Confectioners. She warns that the negative trend is continuing, and that the low point for closures has not yet been reached.
Competition has heightened in recent years, not least due to a surge in imported pre-baked products. More and more places are now baking imported pasta, which is cheaper than making dough and bread themselves. “This means competition for Swiss-made artisanal products,” Vernocchi says.
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