Migrants play an important role for Swiss employers. Foreign workers build roads and houses, care for patients in hospitals, develop software and create new products. Some 1.9 million people from abroad were working in Switzerland at the end of 2025, accounting for 35 per cent of the country’s total working population – up from 25 per cent 20 years ago. Meanwhile, the domestic workforce is shrinking: baby boomers (the generation born from 1946 to 1964) have retired or are about to retire, and low birth rates mean there is a shortage of young people entering the job market. Eighty per cent of foreign workers come from countries in the European Economic Area. Around a million workers have arrived in Switzerland since the introduction of free movement. The bilateral agreements with the EU, which came into force in 2002, give Swiss companies seamless access to the European single market – and allow them to recruit professionals from EU/EFTA countries with ease. Most More than half of immigrants come to Switzerland for employment. They contribute to economic growth and keep the country’s healthcare services running. According to a Swiss National Bank study, Switzerland faces a shortfall of around 400,000 workers over the next ten years. pects demand for workers to continue rising – not least because there is a shortage of trainees learning skilled trades. Thousands of apprenticeships remain unfilled every year in construction, mechanical engineering and hospitality. Shortfall persists despite training drive There is also continued demand for workers in the growing healthcare sector, where 188,000 new jobs were created between 2010 and 2020, according to a report by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). Around a third of these positions were filled by people from EU/EFTA countries. The proportion of foreign personnel is considerably higher in Ticino and the Lake Geneva region, where many healthcare employees commute from Italy and France every day. Over 40 per cent of practising physicians in Switzerland are foreign, of whom half come from Germany. To reduce this level of dependency, the Confederation and cantons have increased the number of places for medical students at Swiss universities in recent years. But this training drive only goes so far in meeting demand, as figures from 2024 show: whereas 1,400 medical graduates reforeign nationals work in labour- intensive economic sectors – like catering or building. In professions such as bricklaying and floor laying, they account for as much as 60 per cent of the workforce. Demand for skilled people is particularly high in the booming construction sector, where companies are operating at full capacity and increasing their income. More homes are being built, and the public sector is investing in new infrastructure. The Swiss Contractors’ Association exMigrants play an important role in the Swiss labour market. Most work in labourintensive areas, e.g. restaurants and hotels (pictured left and middle). Photos: Keystone Swiss Review / April 2026 / No. 2 6
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