Labor market Employment situation remains solid in the third quarter

The employment situation in Switzerland remains solid. Employment rose in both industry and the service sector in the third quarter. However, the indicator for the future outlook has deteriorated somewhat.

A total of 5.528 million people were employed in Switzerland in the quarter under review. This is 1.2 percent or 65,800 jobs more than in the same period last year, as reported by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) on Monday. The proportion of women was 46.6 percent.

In the secondary sector (industry and construction), the number of employees rose only slightly by 0.7% to 1.139 million, according to the figures. In the tertiary sector (services), the number of employees increased somewhat more significantly by 1.3% to 4.389 million.

Seasonally adjusted and compared to the previous quarter, the number of employees in companies increased by 10,700 jobs (+0.2%). This means that the number of jobs in the second sector increased slightly by 900 (+0.1%) and in the third sector by 13,300 (+0.3%).

Outlook has deteriorated

In the quarter under review, companies reported a total of 98,800 job vacancies, according to the report. Compared to a year ago, this is 14,000 fewer jobs (-12%). There were fewer vacancies in both the second sector (-13%) and the third sector (-12%).

The outlook has clouded over somewhat. The proportion of companies planning to increase their workforce in the short term was still 10.9% of total employment in the third quarter, compared to 12.4% in the same quarter of the previous year, according to the press release. Five percent intend to reduce their workforce (4.5% in the same quarter of the previous year).

The gloomier outlook can also be seen in the employment outlook indicator. This has fallen by 1% compared to the previous year. However, at 1.03 points, it remains in positive territory.

SDA