UN applauds Swiss efforts to reduce gender pay gap
Despite being enshrined in the constitution since 1981, Swiss pay equality among men and women is still not a reality.
Keystone
A Swiss initiative to close the pay gap between men and women has been recognised by the United Nations, which has bestowed a Public Service Award on a government department responsible for gender equality issues.
Three years ago, the Federal Office for Gender Equality launched plans to achieve a fairer distribution in wages between the sexes. The UN says this policy to level the playing field constitutes a significant contribution towards its Sustainable Development Goals.
On Tuesday, government proposals to close the gender salary gap cleared a hurdle when the Senate approved its measures. They agreed that private sector companies with at least 100 employees should be obliged to report on the salary levels of male and female staff every four years. It rejected an earlier plan to impose this measure on firms with at least 50 employees. The issue must still be discussed in the House of Representatives.
The second string of the Swiss initiative is a charter for public service agencies that would allow for regular audits to test pay equality.
The proposal still has some way to go before reaching the statute books, but it appears to be gaining political momentum.
A 2014 survey by the Federal Statistical Office put the gap at 18.9% between 2010 and 2012. While some of this disparity can be explained by differences in experience and qualifications, the government insists that more than 7% of the wage gap is simply discrimination.
Equal pay between men and women has been anchored in the Swiss constitution since 1981, a principle that was sharpened by the 1996 Gender Equality Act. Progress to achieving this ideal has been slow, but the gender equality office and its 2015 initiative has been recognized by the UN as a catalyst for faster progress.
What do you think Switzerland’s Alain Berset can bring to the Council of Europe?
The former interior minister is to become the first Swiss Secretary General of the Council of Europe – which issues should his five-year term focus on?
Initiative for Switzerland to back nuclear weapon ban launched
This content was published on
The Alliance for a Nuclear Weapons Ban has launched a popular initiative for Switzerland to join the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Swiss film director faces backlash over AI-written screenplay
This content was published on
Complaints from film fans over the use of AI has led Prince Charles Cinema in London to cancel the premiere of The Last Screenwriter.
Prices of certain cheap medicine to rise sharply in Switzerland
This content was published on
Consumers in Switzerland face higher prices for certain common medicine following a reform of the pricing system that came into force on July 1.
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
Swiss parliament to decide on equal pay measures
This content was published on
The proposed law was born out of political frustration at perceived corporate foot-dragging on the equal pay question. Studies have shown self-regulation to be a relatively ineffective way of imposing equal pay despite the right being enshrined in the Swiss constitution 36 years ago. A Federal Statistical Office (FSO) survey, published three years ago, found that…
This content was published on
Except in certain circumstances, an employer in Switzerland does not have the right to ask a female candidate for a position if she “would like to have children”. But some do, and in such a case a woman has the right to lie. If she can subsequently prove that she was not hired because of…
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.