May 1: Swiss unions see further improvements for workers
Interior Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider from the left-wing Social Democratic Party is scheduled to speak in Thun on Wednesday
Keystone/Anthony Anex
Labour Day events are being held across Switzerland on Wednesday under the slogan “Premiums down, wages up!”.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA
Português
pt
Sindicatos suíços veem mais melhorias para os trabalhadores
Following the success at the polls of the 13th monthly pension payment in March, the trade unions see another opportunity to improve the situation of the working population on June 9.
“The Yes to the 13th pension has shown what is possible and should point the way for the future,” says an appeal published in advance by the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions for Labour Day, also known as May Day or International Workers’ Day.
After all, strengthening the old-age pension was only the beginning, it said. “Now, with the vote on the premium relief initiative on June 9, there’s another immediate opportunity to improve the situation of the working population,” it said.
Families, lower and middle incomes are suffering from the explosion in premiums, it explained. The premium burden is becoming unbearable for the middle class. The trade unions are therefore focusing on the “unsocial” financing of the healthcare system. At the same time, they are stepping up their commitment to the wage issue and fighting for purchasing power with lower health insurance premiums.
After years of record profits and dividends, there is finally a need for strong wage increases, the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions said. “Because if things go on like this, the bosses and company owners will get an even bigger slice of the cake.”
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Climate adaptation
Why Switzerland is among the ten fastest-warming countries in the world
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
Prevention and tech could help save billions on Swiss healthcare costs, says Deloitte
This content was published on
By focusing on prevention and technology, it would be possible to reduce Switzerland's healthcare bill by CHF30 billion a year by 2040, according to Deloitte Switzerland.
Environment director warns of increasing climate-related risks in Switzerland
This content was published on
The director of the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) has warned of increasing climate-related risks in Switzerland in an interview with SonntagsBlick on Sunday.
Gotthard traffic queue hits 11km at start of holiday season
This content was published on
The start of the summer holidays saw a long traffic jam in front of the Gotthard tunnel on Saturday. Traffic jams between Erstfeld and Göschenen in canton Uri were up to 11 kilometres long early in the morning.
This content was published on
The water temperature of the Rhine River could rise by up to 4.2° degrees Celsius by the end of the century due to the warming planet, scientists warn.
This content was published on
The Federal Council wants to explore the possibilities of joining the European Union’s €800-billion rearmament programme without compromising Swiss neutrality.
Defence Minister Pfister stresses importance of Swiss mission in Balkans
This content was published on
During a visit to the Balkans region last week, Swiss Defence Minister Martin Pfister met Swisscoy peacekeeping troops in Kosovo.
Premiere for Swiss Air Force on French National Day
This content was published on
On July 14, the Swiss Air Force will take part in the traditional air parade in Paris to mark the French bank holidays with an F/A-18 fighter jet. This is a first for Switzerland.
Swiss launch competition for memorial to Nazi victims
This content was published on
The victims of Nazi Germany are to be commemorated on the Casinoterrasse in Bern. A competition will be held to determine what the site will look like.
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.