Swiss government opposes six week apprentice holiday

Federal Council opposes 6 weeks' holiday for apprentices Keystone-SDA

The Swiss government is rejecting calls to give apprentices an extra week's paid holiday per year.

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The Federal Council opposes five motions calling for paid vacation to be increased from four or five weeks currently to six weeks in order to make apprenticeships more attractive.

Currently, apprentices up to the age of 20 are entitled to five weeks’ holiday a year, and four weeks if they are over 20. Several parliamentary motions would like to give apprentices more holidays, to reduce the disadvantage they have compared to young people who are still studying.

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Supported by a total of nearly 60 elected representatives, the motioners regret that the number of people who decide to take up an apprenticeship is constantly falling, despite the fact that the Swiss dual training system is “a model of success”.

Apprentices help to combat the shortage of skilled labour, and the companies that employ them benefit economically.

“The addition of one week’s holiday a year is therefore financially bearable”, write the authors of the motion. They also point to the psychological burden suffered during the apprenticeship. Offering more holidays to the young people concerned would enable them to prevent situations of mental overload.

An asset for businesses

In its response, the Federal Council points out that companies already have the option of offering their apprentices more holiday than the legal minimum. This is an advantage when it comes to attracting apprentices.

At the same time, the government warns that companies will be less willing to take on apprentices if they miss an extra week at work. It also points out that young people under the age of 30 can already apply for five days’ unpaid leave under the Youth+Sport scheme.

A proposal is on the table to extend the duration of this type of youth leave, to pursue sports, to a maximum of two weeks.

The Federal Council also points out that a round table on vocational training is planned. The general conditions of apprenticeship will be examined, in particular holiday entitlement.

A petition with more than 176,000 signatures in favour of eight weeks’ holiday a year for apprentices was submitted to the Federal Chancellery in August.

Translated from French by DeepL/mga

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