Lower wage rule boosts Geneva summer jobs

More students have found summer work in Geneva after a rule introduced in March allowed certain summer jobs to be paid below the statutory minimum wage, SRF reported. Employers say the change has created additional positions, while trade unions warn of lower incomes and greater financial insecurity.

The Geneva Vegetable Producers’ Association and Migros Geneva are paying summer workers 18.44 Swiss francs gross per hour this year. Geneva’s statutory minimum wage is 24.59 francs, meaning affected young workers receive about six francs less per hour.

More jobs after wage reduction

The producers’ association welcomes the new rule, saying it could help preserve summer jobs, whose numbers have declined in recent years. It employs about 20 young people this year, twice as many as last year.

Association director Xavier Patry told French-language Swiss public broadcaster RTS that the exemption provided relief. “In Geneva, we have the highest production costs in the world for our activities,” he said. “If we do not pay more, it is not because we do not want to or because employees do not deserve it, but because we are not competitive compared with businesses in other cantons.”

Migros Geneva also reported a positive effect. The company said it employed 19 young people this summer, after hiring no students for summer jobs in the previous two years.

Unions warn of greater insecurity

The reform remains controversial. Trade unions opposed the proposal before it was introduced. “It is regrettable that large employers and financially strong companies are benefiting from this windfall effect,” said Balmain Badel of the Unia Geneva trade union.

The University of Geneva’s student union, CUAE, also expects consequences for workers’ finances. Its managing director, Zora Holzer, said the group expected more applications for scholarships or waivers of tuition fees because students would have lower incomes.

Not all employers are using the exemption. The City of Geneva and Coop continue to pay the statutory cantonal minimum wage for summer jobs.

It is not yet clear whether the reform has increased the total number of summer jobs across the canton. The Geneva employers’ association FER Genève said it did not yet have consolidated figures.