Culture, Central government, Switzerland

The vpod/ssp trade union is busy building support for a national demonstration in Bern on 16 September with a key demand for a 5% pay rise. The union highlights recent data on price increases, particularly for energy, while average real pay has fallen for three consecutive years – the first time this has happened for over 70 years. The data also show how the low paid have fared the worse with women forming the majority of this group. Vpod/ssp points out that not only are big private sector employers making large profits but public authorities also have the funds to cover pay rises for their

The federal collective bargaining committee, including public services union vpod, is calling on the government to include in the 2020 budget funding for a pay rise to fully compensate for inflation. It also wants a minimum increase CH 200 (EUR 175) per month to the benefit of lower paid workers. The positive fiscal situation means that the government is also committed to a pay rise in 2019 to cover inflation. The unions also want concrete measures on work-life balance for those with caring responsibilities.

Negotiations between public service unions and the federal government have yet to produce an agreement and further bargaining will take place next February. The unions are looking for an increase of 1.5% but the government offer is only 0.8%, below the forecast inflation rate of 1%. The unions argue that federal finances are sound with surpluses predicted for both 2018 and 2019 while the economy is also set to grow by 2%. On this basis they argue that federal government workers deserve a pay rise at least in line with inflation.

The vpod/SSP public services union has called on the government to ensure it budgets for a pay increase of at least 1.5% for all federal employees. Working with other public service unions, the vpod/SSP says the government should now end its austerity policies towards its employees, particularly in the light of a CH Fr 5 billion surplus. The unions are worried that the government will use the surplus to cuts taxes and argue that federal workers haven't seen a real increase in pay since a 0.7% rise in 2014 and so a pay rise should be a priority.

The SGB trade union confederation and the vpod public services union have called for a general wage increase of between 1.5% and 2.0%. But the vpod also highlights the need to address the fall in real pay in the public services as well as the importance of ensuring higher pay for jobs dominated by women. Meanwhile the federal court has thrown out a challenge to a proposed minimum wage in the Neuenberg Canton, opening the way to implementation of an hourly minimum of CHFr 20 (€17.50).

(September 2016) The vpod/ssp public services union is joining others in the federal public sector to call for negotiations over pay increases in 2017. The unions have reacted to government figures showing that the budget outcome for 2016 will be a surplus rather than the forecast deficit and the unions argue that this means that the proposed pay freeze for 2017 needs to be withdrawn and a pay rise negotiated.