Wage gaps widened again last year, under the effect of the stagnation of low wages and the increase in the remuneration of managers, denounces the Unia union. He is calling for general wage increases.
On average, for the 43 largest Swiss groups, the highest salary was 141 times higher than the lowest in 2021, Unia criticizes Friday in a press release.
The previous year, this gap was still 1 to 136. But it has already been greater than a ratio of 1 to 140 in the past, for example in 2017 from 1 to 143.
Inequality “filth” at Roche
The union denounces the most “filthy” inequality at Roche, where the employee with the lowest salary would have to work for 307 years to receive the annual salary of general manager Severin Schwan.
In the 2021 financial year, 40 groups paid dividends amounting to around 42 billion francs. Shareholders also benefited from share buybacks of up to 40 billion francs. This equates to a 56% increase over the previous year.
“The argument that companies could not afford to grant general wage increases hardly seems credible given the 82 billion francs distributed to shareholders,” writes Unia. At the same time, some profitable companies have even laid off staff, denounces the union.
>> See also the debate between Yves Defferrard, member of the Unia steering committee, and Christophe Reymond, director of the Center patronal, in Forum:
Low wages stagnate
In half of the companies analyzed, the lowest wages are less than 50,712 francs per year, i.e. below the low wage threshold. “This reflects a general development in Switzerland, where the real wages of the lowest 10% increased by only 0.5% between 2016 and 2020, while those of the highest 10% increased by 4%. salaries of big bosses have even jumped by 12%”, notes Unia.
General increases are in the short term the most effective way to reduce wage inequalities and advance low wages, the union believes. They are all the more urgent given the threats to purchasing power posed by high inflation and the likely sharp rise in health insurance premiums.
>> Read also: The president of Usam not opposed to salary increases on a case-by-case basis
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