Tourism and leisure Social partners in the hospitality industry want to get out of the low-wage zone
Higher wages, a better work-life balance, more accessible further training and measures against harassment: This is what the hospitality industry's employee association and trade unions are demanding as part of the collective labor agreement, which will be renegotiated from November.
10.11.2025, 10:00
SDA
Within this framework, the industry should "get out of the low-wage zone", as the employee organization Hotel & Gastro Union and the trade unions Unia and Syna wrote in a press release on Monday. The lowest minimum wage is currently CHF 3,700 per month, while the median wage for employees without a management function is CHF 4,335.
Specifically, the parties involved are calling for an automatic inflation adjustment on minimum wages as well as higher real wages. The aim should also be for employees with a federal certificate of proficiency or an equivalent - including foreign - diploma to earn at least CHF 5,000.
Trade unions and employees also want employers to make a greater contribution to further training. A wide range of courses are already financed through the collective employment agreement, but employees contribute 90 percent of the costs.
In order to improve the work-life balance, the participants are calling for plannable days off, an extension of maternity leave and a flexible return after parental leave. Protective provisions against sexual harassment and bullying are also needed.
The National Collective Labor Agreement for the Hospitality Industry (L-GAV) regulates the wages and working conditions of more than a quarter of a million employees in the hospitality industry, hotels and food delivery. The renegotiations will last until the end of 2026, with the changes due to come into force at the beginning of 2028. The previous agreement dates back to 2017.
