There is no such thing as a generally accepted minimum wage in Switzerland. There are, however, regulations according to the standard employment contract for domestic employment (NAV Hauswirtschaft for all employments starting from at least an average of five working hours a week with the same employer – Status as of January 1st 2017) that have to be respected. These regulations exclude the following employer-employee relationships: au pairs, apprenticeships, traineeships as well as day nannies.
Apart from the Canton of Geneva, the following hourly minimal gross wages (excluding vacation compensations) are applicable in Switzerland:
- Untrained domestic employees without professional experience: CHF 19.95 per hour
- Untrained domestic employees with four years of experience in domestic employment: CHF 21.85 per hour
- Trained domestic employees with three years of vocational education and a Federal Certificate of Competence (Eidgenössischer Fähigkeitsausweis EFZ): CHF 24.05 per hour
- Trained domestic employees with two years of vocational education and a vocational certificate (Berufsattest EBA): CHF 21.85 per hour
For the Canton of Geneva, the following minimum wages are applicable as of 2024:
- CHF 24.32 per hour without vacation compensation (hourly wage)
- CHF 4'423.00 per month for a 42-hour week (monthly wage)
The hourly wage can be reduced proportionally if the wage is paid 13 times per year. More information on the solution in the canton of Geneva: https://www.ge.ch/appliquer-salaire-minimum-genevois