CEOs of Swiss companies earn over 300 times more than employees

The latest study by Unia has found that the gap between the lowest and highest earners in Switzerland remains high at a ratio of 1:143. Executives at some of the top Swiss companies earn over 300 times more than the lowest earners at the same company.

Wage gap at top companies in Switzerland remains high

A recent study by Unia has found that the wage gap remained high in 2024 at a ratio of 1:143. The study examines the difference in salary between the lowest and highest earners at 39 companies in Switzerland that are either highly valued or employ at least 11.000 people. The wage gap “shows how fairly” a company distributes its success. Some companies saw a decline in wage gap, for example at Holcim, Swiss Life, Schindler and VAT Group.

The gap has been increasing in Switzerland for a number of years: from 1:6 in 1986 to 1:52 in 2005, 1:139 in 2022 and 1:143 in 2023, where it remained in 2024. The most significant differences in wages between the highest and lowest earners continued to be at pharmaceutical companies and banks. Wages rose for the highest earners at all but one of the top 10 companies. 

Managers and shareholders continue to profit

CEOs of the top companies in Switzerland saw high annual salaries in 2024. In top place was Novartis’ CEO, Vasant Narasimhan, who earned 19,2 million Swiss francs - 333 times more than the lowest salary of 57,700 Swiss francs at Novartis. Flemming Ørnskov, CEO of Galderma, was in second place earning 19 million Swiss francs, which was 298 times more than the lowest salary. David Layton, CEO of Partners Group, earned 16,9 million Swiss francs, which was 328 times more than the lowest salary at the company.

The top-performing companies profited well in 2024 and passed the earnings on to shareholders via dividends and share buybacks. In total, 45 billion Swiss francs were paid in dividends by the top-performing companies. 

Companies have sufficient resources to raise low wages

Companies in Switzerland have “more than sufficient resources” to distribute their success among their employees, for example, by increasing the lowest paid salaries, says Unia. A survey conducted by the Swiss Economic Institute (KOF) released in August found that many Swiss companies are planning to increase salaries in 2026, sharing which sectors will see the biggest pay rises.

However, Unia also mentioned a “disgraceful” vote that passed in the National Council earlier this year. A new proposal would mean that cantonal minimum wages would be subject to collective employment agreements.