Swiss Watchmakers put Workers on Short-Time
August 04, 24
(IDEX Online) - The Swiss watchmaking industry is putting staff on short-time working as global demand weakens.
In June monthly exports plunged by 7.2 per cent year-on-year - the biggest fall of 2024 - according to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry Exports (FHS).
Forty companies have applied for permission to cut their workers' hours in Jura, one of Switzerland's 26 cantons, according to the daily newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Many are tool, machinery or component suppliers rather than watchmakers.
Employers can claim 80 per cent of lost earnings for their employees from local government and must make pay the rest themselves.
Big manufacturers - such as Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille - say they'll they'll cut production capacity but will hold on to highly-trained staff.