Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

May 1: Swiss unions see further improvements for workers

Baume-Schneider
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!”.

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.

+ Swiss vote: ‘yes’ to higher pensions, ‘no’ to retiring later

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.

+ Swiss federal votes on June 9: what’s on the agenda?

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.

Most Read
Swiss Abroad

Most Discussed

News

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