French cross-border workers in Switzerland fear “discriminatory” unemployment reform

In the French region surrounding Geneva, elected officials and cross-border workers are protesting against proposals to reduce unemployment benefits for cross-border workers in Switzerland. They argue the measures are “discriminatory”, with some associations prepared to take legal action. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox “The cross-border worker is valued at times, but envied and vilified at others. They are a scapegoat,” says Thomas Fischer, head of the European Cross-Border Group, which has 25,000 members. However, the salaries of cross-border workers bolster the economies of several French regions, he told AFP at the association’s headquarters in Annemasse, Haute-Savoie. At the centre of the discussions is the negotiation on unemployment insurance between employers and unions, set to conclude on Thursday. The government is asking them to find an additional €400 million (CHF373 million) compared to last year’s agreement. +More than 400,000 cross-border ...