Though everyone likes to take time off from work, it can be annoying when your employer decides your holidays for you. With this in mind, here’s whether your employer in Switzerland can force you to take paid leave:

Can Swiss employers force you to take time off?

According to employment law expert Anina Kuoni, employers in Switzerland are allowed to determine when their workers take time off. Though not explicitly mentioned in Swiss labour law, it falls under the employer’s general right to issue instructions to employees. 

However, Kuoni noted the company must consider the personal wishes and needs of their staff as much as possible when deciding when and where to grant leave.

Taking paid leave in Switzerland: The Betriebsferien

A common practice in the Swiss workplace is the so-called company holiday or Betriebsferien. This is a period, typically in the lead-up to public holidays like Christmas, when a company shuts down its operations and requires nearly every member of staff to go on holiday.

Sometimes, Betriebsferien can last up to a month, during which employees are expected to spend their paid leave. But can firms force employees to sit back and relax for so long?

Companies can force workers to take weeks-long paid leave

In the case of Betriebsfeiren, Kuoni noted that most companies let their employees know about company holidays well ahead of time. Therefore, “the employer can expect employees to take them,” she told the Tages-Anzeiger. 

In situations where your employer has workers across multiple cantons, companies can also mandate a day off for all staff during public holidays which are statutory in one canton but not others. Kuoni noted that the company is entitled to do so, as cantonal days off may disrupt the workflow of their business if everyone isn't working.

What happens if I run out of paid leave?

Of course, there may be some occasions when an enforced company holiday means you use up all of your paid leave or even fall into deficit. According to Kuoni, the latter is unlikely to occur, as the company or HR department would have had to make a mistake in granting the extra leave without considering the Betriebsferien.

Nevertheless, in cases where vacation time has been used up before the company holiday, what happens next is determined either by your work contract (if the policy is stated) or the discretion of your employer. In these cases, a temporary reduction in salary, a cut in next year’s paid leave allowance or a one-off increase in paid leave are all possible solutions.