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Keystone
![The SVP headed by party president Albert Rösti wants to use the dismissal initiative to control immigration without the free movement of people.]()
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The SVP headed by party president Albert Rösti wants to use the dismissal initiative to control immigration without the free movement of people.
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imago images/Future Image
![But what does free movement of people bring for the job market?]()
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But what does free movement of people bring for the job market?
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keystone-sda.ch
![The Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons has made a significant contribution to economic growth, said State Secretary and Seco Director Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch]()
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The Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons has made a significant contribution to economic growth, said State Secretary and Seco Director Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch
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Keystone
![Daniel Lampart, chief economist of the Swiss Confederation of Trade Unions, concluded that wage pressure and the spread of low wages could have been contained.]()
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Daniel Lampart, chief economist of the Swiss Confederation of Trade Unions, concluded that wage pressure and the spread of low wages could have been contained.
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Immigration in recent years, for example, covers the need for workers. Fears that Swiss people have been pushed out of the labor market with the EU since the introduction of free movement of persons will be refuted by new federal figures.
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The observatory on the free movement agreement between Switzerland and the EU has been analyzing the effects of free movement of persons on the labor market and social security for 15 years. This year’s report was eagerly awaited, as the people and the classes will vote at the end of September on the SVP’s limitation initiative, which questions the free movement of people.
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The report published on Monday by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco) is more likely to play into the hands of opponents of the referendum. The main messages are: immigration roughly corresponds to the labor force demanded by companies. And: Immigrants from the EU / EFTA region give the Swiss labor market additional flexibility.
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“Depends on cooperation”
State Secretary and Seco Director Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch told the Bundeshaus media that the free movement of people had made a significant contribution to economic growth and prosperity in Switzerland. “If we want to continue to prosper, we are dependent on cooperation with the EU.”
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Swiss people have been pushed into better jobs since the introduction of the free movement of persons 18 years ago, Boris Zürcher, head of the Directorate of Employment at Seco, stated. Most of the negative effects could have been prevented.
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This is also the opinion of the social partners. “There can be no talk of a systematic displacement of Swiss people into the labor market,” said Roland Müller, director of the Swiss employers’ association. Daniel Lampart, chief economist of the Swiss Confederation of Trade Unions, concluded that wage pressure and the spread of low wages could have been contained.
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Constant immigration
Last year, net immigration from the EU / EFTA region remained practically constant at around 30,700 people compared to the previous year (31,200). However, the decline in the migration balance was significantly less than the mid-decade, the report shows. The study authors explain this with the “somewhat stronger labor demand in Switzerland in the past two years”.
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Net immigration from third countries decreased last year by 2,700 to 20,800 people. The federal government writes of “continuity in the development of immigration”. However, the composition has changed according to regions of origin. Between 2010 and 2019, immigration from the labor force from southern and eastern Europe increased significantly more than that from northern and western Europe.
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With regard to the employment rate, it can be seen that this increased steadily for Swiss and EU nationals in the years 2010 to 2019. The employment rate for immigrants from the EU was 87.7 percent in 2019, while it was 84.6 percent for Swiss nationals. The report concludes that the workforce potential of domestic and foreign people in Switzerland is being used well.
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No negative effects on wage developments
The report also found no negative effects on the wage development of the Swiss population. In 2018, the Swiss median wage was 6,873 Swiss francs, 5.1 percent above the median wage of all employees. Swiss people achieved above-average wages in all three language regions.
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To this end, immigration from the EU / EFTA region has a positive effect on the first pillar earnings, as the report shows. With regard to AHV and IV pensions, the study concludes that “foreign nationals make a significant contribution to the financing and security of these social welfare systems”.
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When it comes to unemployment insurance, it turns out that Swiss people have a clearly below-average unemployment risk compared to immigrants. This is also reflected in social assistance. Swiss nationals are less dependent on social assistance than citizens from the EU / EFTA region or from third countries.
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The SVP puts the disadvantages of free movement of people at the center of its argument for the limitation initiative. She fears that wages may come under pressure or workers may be displaced.
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According to State Secretary Ineichen-Fleisch, not everyone actually benefits from the free movement of people to the same extent. Switzerland has, however, established various measures to protect domestic workers – for example the accompanying measures, the duty to report jobs, and the expansion of the advisory services for older workers. (SDA)
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