Swiss authorized to employ “low-cost” staff

For the past three years, it's not uncommon to see Swiss flights operated by Air Baltic. Under a partnership, customers can book their flight with Swiss but be transported by the Latvian company, which provides the aircraft and crews. The ticket price remains unchanged. Most of the time, neither does the standard. However, the staff are paid the Latvian rate. Expect to pay 1,500 francs gross per month, three times less than in Switzerland.

This practice, denounced from the outset by the Swiss Trade Union Federation as wage dumping, has just been endorsed by the Zurich Cantonal Economic Directorate, reports the " Tages Anzeiger " on Friday. Given that Swiss has its headquarters in Kloten, the Directorate considers that Air Baltic staff operating for Swiss should not be considered "posted" to Zurich. Rather, it considers this work in Switzerland as a simple "stopover," with employees starting and finishing their missions in Riga. There is therefore no reason to offer them a Swiss salary.

"We don't understand how the canton could have made this decision," laments Daniel Lampart of the Swiss Trade Union Federation (USS). He calls it a true "miscarriage of justice," which will further exacerbate wage pressures in the aviation sector. "Zurich is the hub of Air Baltic's operations. Some employees take off there several times a day and carry out a significant portion of their work there, as do their colleagues directly employed by Swiss." The decision can be appealed before the Zurich Administrative Court.

"Of course, we would prefer to operate all flights ourselves," a Swiss spokesperson explained in 2023. But the airline is facing recurring engine problems , which is grounding part of its fleet. While outsourcing was intended as a temporary solution, it has since been extended multiple times. Note that the situation is different for Air Baltic's maintenance staff based in Zurich. After 90 days of work on site, they must obtain proper residence permits.