The Council of States, the upper house of Switzerland’s Parliament, has refused to allow retailers to open for business on up to 12 Sundays a year.
By a very slim margin of 22 votes against 21, deputies rejected on Tuesday the motion seeking to allow shops to open on one Sunday each month.
Current rules allow retailers to open for business on only four Sundays a year.
Deputies have therefore turned down moves toward more flexible shopping hours which, according to MP Tiana Moser from the Green Party – one of the motion’s instigators – “would allow [Swiss] retailers to strengthen their competitiveness against online and international suppliers.”
She pointed out that Swiss consumers already frequently shop on Sundays, at shops located at train stations “that are open on that day,” adding that “this situation creates a competitive disadvantage for traditional retail and brick-and-mortar stores.”
Attack against worker protection
Among those who voted ‘no’ to the proposal, deputy Carlo Sommaruga from the Social Democratic Party, called the move to open shops on Sunday “a head-on attack against the legal framework for worker protection.”
Concretely, he pointed out that under this rule, employees “would lose their entitlement to a Sunday work supplement,” which is currently in place.
The volume of purchases won’t increase, but operating costs will, said Centre Party deputy Andrea Gmür-Schönenberger, also the proposal’s opponent.
The National Council will vote on this measure next.
READ MORE: Where exactly can you shop in Switzerland on a Sunday?
Meanwhile in Geneva…
On June 14h, voters in the canton will have their say on an amendment to the law governing shop opening hours.
The proposed amendment would allow businesses to open until 5 pm on December 31st, as well as on two Sundays a year.
However, Sunday work would be voluntary, with a 100-percent pay supplement or equivalent time off in lieu.
READ MORE: Why is Switzerland so obsessed about keeping Sundays sacred?
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