Economiesuisse chief calls for new career paths for graduates

Companies must help university graduates enter the workforce as artificial intelligence takes over some typical entry-level jobs, Economiesuisse’s new president Silvan Wildhaber told SRF. The business umbrella group represents about 100,000 companies.

Wildhaber said it was painful to see highly qualified young people unable to find work. He said discussions were under way about creating an academy after university, supported by several companies. It would combine practical experience at a company with further training for a profession, “similar to an apprenticeship, but later”.

Graduates could then move into roles requiring human skills and experience that artificial intelligence lacks, Wildhaber said. A similar model already exists for auditors. He stressed that the academy was only an idea at this stage.

Wildhaber also said employers should find solutions for older workers, who can struggle more than younger people to find a new job after being laid off. He said both issues were personally important to him.

Economy and farming groups plan to renew alliance

Economiesuisse and the farmers’ association, along with employer and trade associations, are aiming to continue their “Perspektive Schweiz” alliance in the next election year, Wildhaber said. The leaders of the groups involved have agreed to pursue it, but he said the farmers’ parliamentary body must also approve the Mercosur free trade agreement.

The alliance, also known as the “money and manure alliance”, was formed ahead of Switzerland’s 2023 federal elections. Its members campaigned together to elect politicians supportive of business and agriculture. Farmers’ representatives later failed several times to back economic interests, including initially rejecting the Mercosur agreement in the National Council. They eventually supported it after more than 500 million francs in compensation was agreed. “We are testing this a second time,” Wildhaber said, adding that he believed it was better to work together against left-wing proposals.