Neither the famous 4-day work week nor remote work, the latest controversy surrounding the work schedule is in the ruling issued by a Swiss court that recognizes that the company should not pay for the time we spend in the bathroom. Employees will have to clock in every time they go to the bathroom.
The origin of the problem arose from an inspection in 2021 at the company Jean Singer et Cie. The company, which has 400 employees, required workers to clock in and out of the bathroom and did not pay for the time spent, considering those trips to the bathroom as breaks. As expected, the Office for Labor Relations and Working Conditions prohibited maintaining this practice.
Forced to clock in to go to the bathroom
The Office for Labor Relations and Working Conditions recognized that the measure could lead to physiological problems due to not hydrating or meeting the body’s needs to avoid consequences, and pointed out that “work interruptions that satisfy physiological needs cannot be considered breaks”.
The problem was that, according to the Swiss Labor Law, no section explicitly regulates what is considered an employee break, so after appealing the decision and reaching the Public Law Court, the latter ruled in favor of the company. The ruling stated that, as indicated in the law, workdays exceeding nine hours require one hour of regulated rest. Since it does not specify the purpose of these breaks, the company decided to include them in that hour to force employees to clock in for them as well.
According to the company’s legal representative, “whether it’s a bathroom break, a meal break, or a rest break, work activity is interrupted and, therefore, compensation is also interrupted. And that’s why they need to be clocked in.” The business executive, on the other hand, has a different opinion.
Switzerland is not immune to the current problems that society is facing, not only in finding work, but also the challenges employers are experiencing in retaining their workers. If aspects such as remote work or the 4-day work week have been put on the table, it is precisely because institutions and companies believe that making job positions more attractive is vital to continue progressing.
The fight to reduce stress, improve productivity, enhance quality of life, and offer greater flexibility has been, according to experts, the factors that have most influenced the explosion of remote work. This measure, however, seems to go against all of them and sets a dangerous precedent.
Barbara Zimmermann-Gerster, a business executive, asserts that the ruling signed by the Swiss court “is not the direction to be followed. Faced with a scarcity of qualified job positions, companies must ensure that they are attractive and meet the needs of employees.”
Image | Olivier Collet
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