- According to a study commissioned by the Swiss Employers’ Association, there are hardly any wage inequalities between men and women in Switzerland.
- In the evaluation of the wage equality analyzes of 461 companies, over 99 percent were correct.
- The Swiss trade union confederation criticizes the study: It only depicts a very small part of reality.
According to the Gender Equality Act, companies in Switzerland with more than 100 employees must carry out an equal pay analysis and submit it to the employees and shareholders by the end of June at the latest.
The University of St. Gallen (HSG) compiled 615 equal pay analyzes for the Swiss Employers’ Association (SAV). This corresponds to around 10 percent of the companies with 550,000 employees that are required to be analyzed, as the association announced. According to him, the survey is based on the largest data collection on the subject to date.
3.3 percent unexplained wage gap
According to the study, 89 percent of the companies surveyed showed no gender effect. 3.3 percent of the wage gap between men and women remained unexplained.
For reasons of comparability, the detailed analysis concentrated on the 461 companies that use the federal government’s equal pay instrument. Of these, 99.3 percent adhered to the Gender Equality Act. Three companies had a higher wage difference than 5 percent, which the federal government still tolerates.
For the association, the survey shows that the federal requirements are being complied with both across the sectors and across the regions. The wage differences would only move within a narrow range.
The employers’ association sees itself confirmed by the finding. The figures used by the trade unions in the political debate on the unexplained wage difference are exaggerated.
At the same time, the operational reality is significantly better than the wage structure survey by the Federal Statistical Office shows. The SAV demands that the positive numbers should be included in the debate. The companies have made great strides.
Unionists criticize the study
Nevertheless, they should not let up. It is important to tackle the wage differences by addressing the causes, mainly the more frequent interruptions in women’s working lives. Therefore, conditions are needed that allow women to work in the same way as men.
The Swiss Federation of Trade Unions (SGB) has criticized the study. The study presented by the employers’ association shows only a very small part of operational reality, writes the SGB in a statement. Only around 10 percent of the companies that have carried out an equal pay analysis are covered in the study.
The study is therefore not representative and only very conditionally meaningful. Since the survey is based on self-declaration, it can be assumed that the survey mainly covers companies that assume that they have nothing to hide when it comes to wage discrimination.