Night work
Work that is carried out between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. is considered to be evening work and does not need to be authorised. The start and end of day and evening shift in the company may be decided differently between 5 am and midnight. On the other hand, special attention should be paid to the provisions that apply to young people. Only those that are aged 16 or over are authorised to work until 10 p.m. Exceptional or regular night work by young people aged 16 and over requires authorisation. For certain occupations, however, exceptions to the authorisation requirement are laid down in an EAER ordinance. Exceptions in specific cases are based on the premise that night work is only permissible if it is indispensable for the young person's training or if there is a necessity due to an operational disruption in case of force majeure. If night work is deemed necessary, authorisation must be obtained from the competent cantonal authority and mentioned in the apprenticeship contract. An authorisation from SECO is necessary if the night work is to be carried out on a regular basis.
When night work is authorised for a given VET programme or host company, the following must be complied with:
- Apprentices who work less than 25 nights per year are entitled to a supplemental salary, which is equivalent to at least 25?% for the night work.
- Apprentices who work at nights on a regular basis are entitled to 10% overtime pay.
- The night work must be carried out within a ten-hour period.
- Apprentices are entitled to a daily rest period of at least 12 consecutive hours.
- The EAER Ordinance of 21 April 2011 on Special Dispensations for Night and Sunday Work in Apprenticeship Training (SR 822.115.4) stipulates that apprentices cannot be required to work at night before and after classroom instruction days.
