Employers demand free movement of labour

Many Swiss fear the arrival of workers from eastern Europe will drive down salaries Keystone Archive

The Swiss Employers’ Association has warned a "no" vote to opening the labour market to new EU member states could have dire consequences.

The association’s president, Rudolf Stämpfli, said on Friday that voters should realise that the extension of an accord with the EU would have beneficial effects for the Swiss economy.

Speaking on Employers’ Day in Bern, Stämpfli added that voting “no” could lead to the collapse of all the bilateral accords negotiated with the EU in recent years. He said this would lead to “huge damage” for Switzerland.

According to the association, every third job in Switzerland depends on trade with the EU, and these positions will only be guaranteed if the export sector continues to grow.

Stämpfli reckons that Switzerland’s gross national product could expand by up to 0.5 per cent per year if the extension of the labour agreement to the EU’s ten newest member states, most of them in eastern Europe, is accepted.

Jürgen Strube, president of the European Industry and Employers’ Association, confirmed that the EU would in all likelihood terminate the 1999 free movement agreement if the extension were refused.

“The European Union will not allow discrimination against any of its members,” he said.

As to fears that opening the Swiss labour market would lead to wage dumping and job losses for locals, Strübe believes these are unfounded.

“Since the expansion of the EU to 25 member states, we have not seen workers flooding job markets,” he added.

EU figures have shown that within 15 member states, only 1.5 per cent of the population has moved to another country. Based on this figure, it estimates that around 220,000 people from new member states might migrate.

Safeguards

Stämpfli said there is no reason to worry about the labour market being opened eastwards, adding that Switzerland benefited from transitory measures built in to the accord with the EU.

These include a gradual introduction of the agreement and limitations on the number of workers who can be employed under it at least until 2011. Swiss salaries also benefit from protection measures, as do working conditions.

Employers admit they would have preferred a more liberal accord, but Stämpfli says that the concerns of employees and unions had to be taken into account.

The centre-right Christian Democrat and Radical parties support a positive vote on the extension of the labour accord. The rightwing People’s Party is split on the issue.

The unions have also leaned in favour of a “yes” after parliament agreed to a series of protection measures.

But they are running their own campaign, saying the extension benefits workers because safeguards include compulsory collective bargaining agreements, possible minimum wages and regular inspections of working conditions.

swissinfo with agencies

In brief

The original agreement on the free movement with the fifteen old EU member states came into force on June 1, 2002.

Residence quotas continue to apply in Switzerland until June 2007, or even until 2014 in the event of large-scale immigration.

For the EU’s ten new member states, there is a separate transitional system.

This protocol enables Switzerland to maintain restrictions of access to its labour market until April 30, 2011.