Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Health workers want better working conditions

Group of nurses staging a protest in a park
The study is based on data from about 600 health workers who finished their training in 2012. Keystone/Ennio Leanza

Certified health workers in Switzerland say their jobs are often not compatible with family life.

They also ask for more regular shift work and more flexible working conditions, according to a long-term study by the Zurich college of applied sciences which was published on Wednesday.

The researchers interviewed more than 600 people who finished their professional training at a Swiss nursing college since 2012.

Nine out of ten respondents said they intended to stay in the job for a longer time, but only if working conditions improve.

Many of them also said their salaries were too low.

The findingsExternal link largely confirm previous studies and come as proposals to improve working conditions in the sector are up for nationwide vote next month.

A people’s initiative wants the government to upgrade training opportunities and labour conditions for health workers to address a shortage of care personnel.

Parliament recommends rejection of the initiative but has approved a plan to invest CHF1 billion ($1.1 billion) over the next eight years in training and further education without imposing additional rules about working conditions.

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

No Swiss bank in phase with environmental objectives

More

Swiss banks failing environment, says WWF

This content was published on None of the 15 major Swiss retail banks is meeting international climate and biodiversity targets, according to a ranking by WWF Switzerland.

Read more: Swiss banks failing environment, says WWF
UNRWA provides emergency assistance to just over one million Palestine refugees, or about 75 per cent of all Palestine refugees in Gaza, who lack the financial means to cover their basic food.

More

Lazzarini: no alternative to UNRWA in Gaza

This content was published on The only alternative to the UN Palestinian agency’s work in Gaza is to allow Israel to run services there, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, told reporters in Geneva on Monday.

Read more: Lazzarini: no alternative to UNRWA in Gaza

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

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.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR