The latest data from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) has found that the rate of unemployment has continued to fall, with 10.375 people finding jobs in Switzerland over the last month. The number of people claiming unemployment benefits has also declined to 104.391 applicants.
SECO announced last Friday that unemployment has fallen by 1 percent over the last year, mainly due to the reopening of the economy after all federal COVID rules were phased out. While the rate of employment increased across all age categories, workers aged 15 to 24 saw the biggest improvement, with youth unemployment declining by 7,3 percent in the last year.
In the last month, the number of job seekers has declined by 0,1 percent, or by 10.375 people. Today, there are 63.007 fewer job seekers than in April 2021 and 46.888 fewer people applying for social security. The government also reported that the number of employees on fixed-term working contracts has declined, with 7,7 percent fewer workers on time-limited jobs than 12 months ago.
The decline in unemployment has been accompanied by an acute staff shortage in several sectors. Last month, international companies reported a significant rise in the number of vacancies, which in many cases forced them to increase salaries and make working hours more flexible to attract workers.
According to SECO, the job sectors with the biggest gaps in employment were hotels, catering and construction. Worker shortages in Switzerland are expected to continue, with x28AG reporting that there are almost a quarter of a million jobs available.