Switzerland
Strategies for youth employment
- Strategies for youth employment
- Yes
Youth employment strategy planned in the next 2 years
- Discussions within the government
- No
- Consultations with national-level stakeholders (e.g. employers’ and workers’ associations, youth councils, etc.)
- No
- A draft strategy already exists
- No
- Other (please specify)
- No
Countries with national action plans for youth employment
- Monitoring framework (timeline and activity/outcome indicators, e.g. youth labour market indicators)
- Yes
- Funding (indicative budget to implement the plan)
- No
- Institutional responsibilities (e.g. ministries/agencies in charge of specific planned activities )
- No
- Other, specify
- No
Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
- Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
- No
Youth in the national development / employment strategy
- Youth in the national development / employment strategy
- Yes
Additional information:
Switzerland does not have a formally adopted national strategy specifically dedicated to promoting youth employment. However, youth are included as a target group within the framework of unemployment insurance (AC), which actively supports their reintegration into the labour market. Through active labour market policy measures—such as job placement services, counselling, and employability-enhancing programs—young jobseekers benefit from tailored support aligned with labour market demands. Cantonal implementation bodies can adapt quickly and flexibly to changing local labour market conditions. Some labour market measures, such as vocational internships, are specifically designed for young unemployed persons. In periods of rising unemployment, additional financial resources are allocated to reinforce support measures, including those targeting youth.Countries with national goals for youth employment
- Countries with national goals for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
There are youth focused goals particularly in the unemployment insurance system (AC) and the "Vocational Training 2030" initiative. Under the unemployment insurance system, young jobseekers benefit from active labour market policy measures aimed at their rapid and sustainable reintegration into the labour market. These include job placement services, counselling, and targeted labour market measures (MMT), such as vocational internships specifically designed for unemployed youth. Cantonal implementation bodies can flexibly adapt these measures based on local labour market demands, and additional resources are mobilised during periods of higher unemployment. In parallel, vocational education and training (VET) plays a central role in promoting youth employment: • Under the "Vocational Training 2030" initiative, the Confederation and Cantons share the goal that 95% of all 25-year-olds should attain at least a lower secondary level qualification. • The Task Force "Apprenticeship Perspectives" was launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure that young people can continue to access apprenticeship opportunities and that training companies are supported in filling vacancies and maintaining training capacity. • The "Vocational Training PLUS" national campaign promotes the value of vocational education and training, underlining its importance for the economy and society. Swiss VET qualifications are aligned with labour market needs and offer flexibility and mobility through a permeable system and strong emphasis on lifelong learning.Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
- Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
- No
Policy areas in national youth employment strategies
- Macroeconomic and Sectoral policies
- No
- Enterprise Development
- No
- Education, Training and skills development
- Yes
- Labour Demand
- No
- Labour Law and Legislation
- Yes
- Labour Market Policies
- Yes
- Other (please specify)
- No
Social partners' inclusion in the youth employment strategy
- Workers
- Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
- Fully involved
- Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
- Fully involved
- Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
- No
- Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
- No
- Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
- No
- Employers
- Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
- Fully involved
- Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
- Fully involved
- Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
- No
- Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
- No
- Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
- No
Youth-led organizatios' inclusion in the national strategy
- Fully involved
- No
- Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
- No
- Consulted
- Yes
- Informed
- Yes
- Not involved
- No
Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
- Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
- Yes
Additional information:
2023 and 2025: See recent actions undertaken in the context of the Covid crisis (comment to question 1) All actions taken in the context of vocational training are based on the principle of partnership between the Confederation, the cantons and labour organisations. ____________ 2022 All actions in the field of vocational training are based on the principle of partnership between the Confederation, the cantons and labour organisations. From March 2020, the unemployment insurance scheme has introduced additional measures (some of them temporary) to facilitate the entry of young people into the labour market in order to cope with the Covid pandemic: companies receiving compensation for reduced working hours (RHT) can take on apprentices and continue to employ them; trainers responsible for monitoring apprentices who have suffered a loss of work and who continue to supervise them in their training are entitled to compensation for RHT. Finally, from March to May 2020 as well as from January to September 2021, apprentices are entitled to the RHT allowance, with specific conditions for the second period (training must continue, the company is closed by order of the authorities or the main activities are prohibited, the RHT support is subsidiary).Inclusiveness of vulnerable groups in national strategies
- Women
- No
- Migrant Workers
- No
- NEETs
- No
- People with disabilities
- No
- Low skilled workers
- No
- Rural workers
- No
- Other (please specify)
- Yes
Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
- Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
- No