The labour market in Zurich

Where are you from?

The first thing you actually need to understand about finding a job in Switzerland is that your chance of success depends a lot on your citizenship. To begin with, if you are a foreigner who is not in possession of a Swiss work permit, or does not have a chance to get one easily (we will discuss how later), do understand that your chance is very slim, although not entirely impossible, depending on the industry you work in.

Some people can get a Swiss work permit more easily than others. For example, those whose have a Swiss spouse, whose spouse already works in Switzerland with a valid work permit, or EU citizens. If you fall into this category, congratulations! You just need to focus on your job search. As soon as you find a job, the Swiss authorities will grant you a work permit without any problem. However, if you don't fall into this category, for example, if you are a non-EU citizen, you need to understand that your job search in Switzerland will be full of constraints and disappointments. Companies need to go through a crazy amount of paperwork if they wish to hire a non-EU citizen, and there are even quotas every year restricting it. Hence, most companies in Switzerland do not even accept applications from non-EU citizens.

Popular industries in Zurich

That being said, there are a number of industries in Zurich where you will find a lot of foreign workers, even the non-EU ones. These are often the banking, technology and creative industries. As you can already imagine, the banking industry in Zurich is huge. Every year, they hire a large number of expats from abroad. Although many jobs in the banking industry still require German language skills, many others do not. If you are lucky, you may even be able to find a job in this industry dealing with clients with your home country, which then, would naturally require your native language skills. Apart from the banking industry, the IT industry in Zurich is rising. More and more technology companies are setting up headquarters or offices in Zurich as their Swiss or even European base. For example, Google has an office in Zurich and hires IT talents from all around the world. In 2016, the jobs in the IT industry in the Zurich canton represented 5.3% of the overall economy in Zurich.

Last but not least, the creative industry in Zurich has also seen significant changes in recent years. With the rise of innovative companies and start-ups flooding into Zurich, more and more English-speaking jobs are available in this industry. In 2019, some 80,800 people are working in this industry in Zurich Canton.

Availability of jobs in Zurich

The unemployment rate in Switzerland has its seasonality due to the increase in employment opportunities during the winter season. However, in general, the unemployment rate in Switzerland is very low. It averaged 2.6% in 2018 and is forecasted to be 2.4% in 2019 and 2.5% in 2020 by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). Specifically in Zurich, the unemployment rate was 3% in 2018. Indeed, many expats are seeking for jobs in Switzerland. You may be surprised to hear that Switzerland has a shortage of skilled labour. In fact, according to a survey conducted by Manpower, a third of Swiss companies have difficulties filling their vacancies. There are industries in which there are more vacancies, and there are others with fewer vacancies.

The banking industry in Zurich, for example, is big and continuously has vacancies. The IT industry also has a rather high turnover rate in general, as employees in the industry are usually pretty mobile and do not often stay in one place for long. In Zurich, you may also be able to find seasonal jobs, especially in the winter, when there is a high demand for short-term employees at hotels, ski resorts and seasonal markets.

One thing to note is that there is no nationwide legal minimum wage in Switzerland. However, in Zurich, you can expect a median salary of 6,869 CHF per month.