Workers under different rules in each canton

The hot weather is exposing the complexities of Swiss federalism.

Different cantons are bringing their own hot weather rules for construction companies. 

In Geneva, heavy work is banned from midday, while canton Ticino says all work has to stop by 3pm – but that canton allows for an earlier start than others, at 6am.

Other cantons are varying rules – if they have any at all. 

It could be confusing for a company that has projects ongoing in different cantons.

One site could be under different rules than the other, despite being only a few kilometres from each other. 

A spokesman for the Swiss Builders Federation says its hard to keep track. 

More from Bitesize News

  • Geneva could foot the G7 bill

    Geneva fears it will be left with the security bill from a G7 summit just across the border in Évian, according to 24 heures.

  • US NGO discovers Swiss child abuse cases

    Switzerland relies too heavily on an American NGO to detect child sexual abuse online, raising questions about the country's ability to protect children on its own.

  • French singer banned by Paleo

    The Paléo Festival in Nyon says it will no longer invite French singer Patrick Bruel, after a former volunteer accused him of inappropriate behaviour.

  • Cars going uninspected

    The cantons are struggling to keep up with mandatory vehicle inspections, leaving more than 550,000 checks overdue nationwide.

  • War may lead to rent rises

    Rents may rise again, says the bank Raiffeisen.

  • Not a heatwave, yet

    Summer has arrived, with temperatures climbing past 30 over the long weekend. Basel reached 31 and Sion hit 32.4, but MeteoSwiss, says this does not yet count as an official heatwave.

Download our app

  • Available on the App Store
  • Available on Google Play