More job losses in Switzerland after two insurance companies merge; dual French-Swiss nationals will no longer be able to skip Swiss military service; and more news in our Thursday roundup.
New Swiss insurance giant announces job cuts
Helvetia Baloise insurance group will eliminate between 1,400 and 1,800 jobs in Switzerland over the next three years following its merger this month, in which the former company purchased the latter.
This announcement on Wednesday came just days after another Swiss giant, UBS, said 3,000 of its Switzerland-based positions will be slashed as a result of the integration of the former rival Credit Suisse, which it bought in 2023.
Helvetia Baloise’s redundancies will further increase the number of job losses in Switzerland in 2026 and beyond.
READ ALSO: How many jobs are set to be lost in Switzerland in 2026?
Dual French-Swiss citizens will no longer be able to skip service in Switzerland’s military
A decades-old agreement between Bern and Paris gives dual Swiss-French nationals a ‘way out’ of military service in Switzerland. But this is about to change.
The National Council has followed the Council of States in its decision to change the agreement that currently allows an average of 730 dual nationals to avoid military service in Switzerland each year by simply attending an information day in France.
In fact, deputies went one step further: they voted to apply the new rule to all young Swiss men holding dual nationality in countries with which Switzerland has a similar agreement in place.
READ ALSO: Will dual citizens have to do military service in Switzerland?
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MPs approve new professional titles for higher vocational education
After the National Council approved this measure on Wednesday, new titles, such as “Professional Bachelor” and “Professional Master,” are being introduced in higher vocational education.
They are intended to make Swiss vocational training more attractive and better recognised internationally.
In addition, English is now a possible additional examination language for federal professional and advanced vocational examinations.
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A new twist in cross-border shopping practices
It is a well-known fact that many people living in Swiss border regions do their shopping in nearby France, where prices for groceries and other products are lower.
However, according to a new study carried out by France’s National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee), more than one in two French households living in border areas made purchases in Switzerland in 2024, spending 6,600 francs on average.
The reasons why they choose to shop in Switzerland, where prices are higher – especially given the unfavourable (for the French) conversion rate between the euro and the franc – vary.
But as one person told Tribune de Genève, “I find [Swiss products] to be of better quality than in France. I shop in Geneva about once a week on average. And frankly, with the inflation in France, some items in Switzerland are the same price, or even sometimes cheaper
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at news@thelocal.ch
