Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Today marks the first anniversary of the October terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel. In Switzerland, numerous commemorations took place on Sunday, notably at synagogues. Several peace rallies also called for the release of the 101 hostages still held.
Elsewhere in today’s briefing: clocking on and off for toilet breaks at work, exorbitant rents in canton Zug and the Swiss Mullet Cup in canton Valais.
Happy reading!
On Sunday and Monday, ceremonies were held in Switzerland to commemorate the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The rise in anti-Semitism was also discussed.
Over 200 people gathered at Bern’s synagogue on Sunday evening amid tight security to pay tribute to the victims of the Hamas attack in Gaza.
The ceremony was an opportunity for Ralph Friedländer (in photo above), president of the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG), to underline how insecurity and anti-Semitism have increased. “Cases of anti-Semitism have tripled and cases of physical attacks on Jews have even increased tenfold,” he noted. But the federation refused to comment on Israeli policy – that is not its role, it says.
The Swiss government’s representative at the ceremony, Secretary of State Alexandre Fasel, said that there was no justification for the acts of violence, aggression and insults to which Swiss Jews are also subjected.
Nearly 500 people also gathered in Geneva on Sunday evening to demand the release of the 101 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza. Their photos were displayed on the Place des Nations Square in Geneva, along with those of some 370 young people killed at the Nova music festival in Israel one year ago.
Can toilet breaks at the office be deducted from working hours? A Neuchâtel cantonal court has ruled in favour of a local watchmaking company.
At Jean Singer et Cie, a firm that manufactures watch dials, staff have to clock on and off whenever they go to the toilet. According to Neuchâtel’s Office for Work Relations and Conditions (ORCT), this does not comply with the principles of the Federal Labour Act. In January 2022, it asked the company to change its practice.
But Jean Singer et Cie refused. After much back-and-forth with the authorities, the case finally went to court. The company won because “the notion of a break is not clearly defined in the law”, the cantonal court ruled.
However, the judges said the obligation to report toilet breaks discriminated against women. During their menstrual cycle, women are forced to go to the toilet more often and for longer. The court therefore asked the watch manufacturer to introduce measures to reduce these inequalities.
There are fewer “militia politicians” in the federal parliament in Bern. This is the finding of a study by the University of Lausanne.
Of the 246 federal parliamentarians currently in office, more than 40% say politics is their main occupation. This figure is up compared to the last legislature (35.8%).
There are several reasons for this trend, not least the increasing complexity of parliamentary work. But above all, elected members now earn enough money to live on. “Their remuneration remains one of the lowest by international comparison,” says Andrea Pilotti, a political scientist at the University of Lausanne and author of the study.
He puts the status of militia politician into perspective. “In reality, […] when we ask them how much time they devote to their parliamentary mandate, for the vast majority it is at least 50-60% of their working time during the week,” he adds.
This high level of commitment goes a long way to explaining why the self-employed are over-represented in parliament compared to salaried employees. It is easier for them to reconcile their professional and political lives.
In canton Zug, in central Switzerland, higher rents are pushing out middle-class locals. Even particularly advantageous taxes cannot compensate for the high rents.
Over the last ten years, net migration of Swiss nationals has been negative in canton Zug. However, the population continues to grow, due to international immigration. This situation is most likely the result of the canton’s strategy of using very low taxes to attract large multinationals and wealthy foreigners. The result is that it is pushing up rents.
The Zug government is aware of the problem. Last week, it presented a package of measures to try to control the explosion in housing costs. But it has no intention of abandoning its low-tax policy, which is the main cause of rising property prices.
Zug locals say they are disappointed that the canton is “losing its past and therefore its memory”. “I grew up in the heart of Zug. Nowadays, when I walk around town, I hardly meet anyone I know. Instead, English is spoken everywhere,” says local resident Renato Ugolini.
Photo of the day
This weekend, the Foire du Valais [Valais fair] in Martigny organised the first-ever edition of the Swiss Mullet Cup. The winner chosen by 11,000 online voters and following a catwalk show in front of a jury on Sunday. More than 150 people, including 20 women, took part.
Mullets are distinctive haircuts associated with rock stars and sports players in the 1970s and 1980s, featuring short hair at the front, top and sides and grown longer at the back. In recent years the hairstyle has become popular again.
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