An expat email forum I read has recently had a thread on applying for jobs in Switzerland. A typical job application here includes a cover letter, CV, references, and a photo. Yes, they want a picture of you clipped to your CV. They also expect you to list your date of birth and marital status on your CV. Imagine the uproar if an employer in the States asked for pictures and marital status before even granting an interview! They also expect you to submit copies of your college and graduate school diplomas; if applicable, these are also forwarded to the government when applying for a visa. Official school transcripts are only acceptable if copies of your diplomas are not available. I remember finding it strange that the Swiss government would rather look at a shrunken-down photocopy of my college and law school diplomas (which would be easy to fake) than official, signed and sealed transcripts that not only prove that I graduated, but also indicate whether I was a decent student.
If you're lucky enough to land a job, then you sign a contract setting forth the terms of your employment. That seems fairly normal, right? Typical Swiss, the contracts set out working hours in precise detail. "Full-time" and "part-time" are too vague. Standard full-time employment contracts for professionals will state that they are to work 42.5 hours, 40 hours, or 37.5 hours per week, with pre-ordained office hours and a fixed-length lunch break at a set time each day. Part-timers get contracts for 80%, 60%, or even 40% of a full schedule, with similar terms regarding start times, lunch breaks, and so on.
Based on a person's contract, you can predict exactly what time they will walk in the office, when they will eat lunch, what time they will come back, and when they will leave for home. Because most people in the city take public transportation, which runs on a precise-to-the-minute schedule, you can also predict exactly what time they will leave the house in the morning, and you can also determine what time they will walk in their front door and take off their shoes. Me? I leave the house at 8:44 a.m., take the 8:52 a.m. tram (missing the morning rush by a good hour, since the busiest commute time is between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m., as Switzerland is a country full of "morning people"), start work at 9:00 a.m., have lunch from 1:00-2:00 p.m., finish work at 6:00 p.m., putter around a bit before leaving, and get home by 6:25 p.m., usually with a stop at the gummy candy store downstairs on the way up to my apartment. Swissified? Perhaps.
If you're lucky enough to land a job, then you sign a contract setting forth the terms of your employment. That seems fairly normal, right? Typical Swiss, the contracts set out working hours in precise detail. "Full-time" and "part-time" are too vague. Standard full-time employment contracts for professionals will state that they are to work 42.5 hours, 40 hours, or 37.5 hours per week, with pre-ordained office hours and a fixed-length lunch break at a set time each day. Part-timers get contracts for 80%, 60%, or even 40% of a full schedule, with similar terms regarding start times, lunch breaks, and so on.
Based on a person's contract, you can predict exactly what time they will walk in the office, when they will eat lunch, what time they will come back, and when they will leave for home. Because most people in the city take public transportation, which runs on a precise-to-the-minute schedule, you can also predict exactly what time they will leave the house in the morning, and you can also determine what time they will walk in their front door and take off their shoes. Me? I leave the house at 8:44 a.m., take the 8:52 a.m. tram (missing the morning rush by a good hour, since the busiest commute time is between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m., as Switzerland is a country full of "morning people"), start work at 9:00 a.m., have lunch from 1:00-2:00 p.m., finish work at 6:00 p.m., putter around a bit before leaving, and get home by 6:25 p.m., usually with a stop at the gummy candy store downstairs on the way up to my apartment. Swissified? Perhaps.
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