Six big news stories from Switzerland you need to know about this week
Swiss jobs attracting record numbers of immigrants, and Basel-City granting voting right to foreigners, are among the Swiss news The Local reported this week. You can catch up on everything in this weekly roundup.
More Europeans than ever immigrated to Switzerland
A new report from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) confirmed the importance that employees from the European Union and EFTA (Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) have had for Switzerland’s labour market and economy in general.
That is why “demand for foreign labour was strong in Switzerland in 2023,” SECO said in its annual report, which assessed the impact that the Free Movement of Persons agreement has had on the country’s employment.
In 2023, 68,000 people from EU and EFTA countries came to work in Switzerland, according to SECO, driven by “employment growth that has significantly exceeded the EU average."
READ ALSO: Switzerland sees record high immigration from European countries
Deadly floods hit Swiss regions
A woman was rescued from debris, while two men are still missing and presumed dead, after they were caught in torrential rains that caused landslides and flooding in the Misox valley region of Graubünden.
No casualties, but serious damage reportedly amounting to 20 million francs, was also reported in Vaud, where storms described as 'unprecedented' caused banks of the local river to beak, leaving many parts of the town of Morges under water.
READ ALSO: Body found after floods in Switzerland with two still missing
READ ALSO: Town in Vaud hit by 'flood of the century'
Switzerland to allow special characters in foreign names
The new computerised civil status register will be put into service on November 11th, 2024.
From this date, special characters in European languages can be used in Swiss civil status registers and official documents.
An example is the 'c' with an acute accent (ć) in Croatian, and the ^ used in other languages.
Foreign nationals will therefore be able to ask the civil registry to adapt the spelling of their name, at the of cost of 75 francs for a single person and 100 francs for a family.
This process will be free of charge, however, when registering babies’ births.
READ ALSO: Switzerland to relax rules around foreign names
Deputies move to allow Basel foreigners to vote
Foreign nationals with a residence permit, who have lived in Basel-City for at least five years, should be able to vote in the canton, the parliament decided by 53 votes to 41.
The reason for this move is that 38 percent of adult Basel-City population are foreign nationals, who are not allowed to have a say in local political matters.
As in similar moves in other cantons, most recently Geneva, it will ultimately be up to local voters to have the last word on this matter when a referendum on this issue is held — possibly in November.
READ ALSO: Foreign residents in Basel-City could soon have the right to vote
Legal definition of ‘rape’ is changed
The new criminal law on sexual matters, to go into force on July 1st, will introduce a new definition of sexual violence: ‘No is no.’
This is a reform of a longstanding legislation, which has a much narrower definition of what constitutes rape.
For instance, current law requires that penetration takes place and that victim shows resistance for the act to qualify as sexual violence.
Under the new rule, however, participants need to agree in words or clearly demonstrate they want to engage in sexual activity.
If this condition is not fulfilled, the act will be considered as taking place against the person’s wishes, and thus be a criminal offence.
Also, to be considered as sexual assault, the actual penetration no longer needs to occur.
READ ALSO: Switzerland to make key law change around rape, but some cantons may not be ready
And also:
What lies ahead
July is almost here, and many changes await residents of Switzerland during this month — including new sexual assault laws, higher prices of milk and certain medications, as well as new rules for cars.
You can find what’s up for July here:
READ ALSO: Everything that changes in Switzerland in July 2024
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More Europeans than ever immigrated to Switzerland
A new report from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) confirmed the importance that employees from the European Union and EFTA (Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) have had for Switzerland’s labour market and economy in general.
That is why “demand for foreign labour was strong in Switzerland in 2023,” SECO said in its annual report, which assessed the impact that the Free Movement of Persons agreement has had on the country’s employment.
In 2023, 68,000 people from EU and EFTA countries came to work in Switzerland, according to SECO, driven by “employment growth that has significantly exceeded the EU average."
READ ALSO: Switzerland sees record high immigration from European countries
Deadly floods hit Swiss regions
A woman was rescued from debris, while two men are still missing and presumed dead, after they were caught in torrential rains that caused landslides and flooding in the Misox valley region of Graubünden.
No casualties, but serious damage reportedly amounting to 20 million francs, was also reported in Vaud, where storms described as 'unprecedented' caused banks of the local river to beak, leaving many parts of the town of Morges under water.
READ ALSO: Body found after floods in Switzerland with two still missing
READ ALSO: Town in Vaud hit by 'flood of the century'
Switzerland to allow special characters in foreign names
The new computerised civil status register will be put into service on November 11th, 2024.
From this date, special characters in European languages can be used in Swiss civil status registers and official documents.
An example is the 'c' with an acute accent (ć) in Croatian, and the ^ used in other languages.
Foreign nationals will therefore be able to ask the civil registry to adapt the spelling of their name, at the of cost of 75 francs for a single person and 100 francs for a family.
This process will be free of charge, however, when registering babies’ births.
READ ALSO: Switzerland to relax rules around foreign names
Deputies move to allow Basel foreigners to vote
Foreign nationals with a residence permit, who have lived in Basel-City for at least five years, should be able to vote in the canton, the parliament decided by 53 votes to 41.
The reason for this move is that 38 percent of adult Basel-City population are foreign nationals, who are not allowed to have a say in local political matters.
As in similar moves in other cantons, most recently Geneva, it will ultimately be up to local voters to have the last word on this matter when a referendum on this issue is held — possibly in November.
READ ALSO: Foreign residents in Basel-City could soon have the right to vote
Legal definition of ‘rape’ is changed
The new criminal law on sexual matters, to go into force on July 1st, will introduce a new definition of sexual violence: ‘No is no.’
This is a reform of a longstanding legislation, which has a much narrower definition of what constitutes rape.
For instance, current law requires that penetration takes place and that victim shows resistance for the act to qualify as sexual violence.
Under the new rule, however, participants need to agree in words or clearly demonstrate they want to engage in sexual activity.
If this condition is not fulfilled, the act will be considered as taking place against the person’s wishes, and thus be a criminal offence.
Also, to be considered as sexual assault, the actual penetration no longer needs to occur.
READ ALSO: Switzerland to make key law change around rape, but some cantons may not be ready
And also:
What lies ahead
July is almost here, and many changes await residents of Switzerland during this month — including new sexual assault laws, higher prices of milk and certain medications, as well as new rules for cars.
You can find what’s up for July here:
READ ALSO: Everything that changes in Switzerland in July 2024
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