Short-time work: 24 months hold until 31 January 2027

A forecast does not shorten compensation already running. On 21 October 2026 the Federal Council examined short-time work compensation. Given the improved economic situation, it envisages a staggered return to the ordinary rules. It did not change those rules that day.

What still applies

Short-time work remains a tool to steady firms and jobs in difficult periods. Unemployment insurance temporarily covers a large part of the pay lost with the hours not worked. The press release does not state the rate of that part.

The maximum period of compensation is 24 months, instead of 12. The waiting period is one day, instead of three. Since the end of the pandemic, firms bear that one day. The period of 24 months applies until 31 January 2027.

Firms that suffer unavoidable losses of work can still apply for short-time work. Applications and accounts go through the eService on travail.swiss.

What the Federal Council is preparing

The Federal Council can adjust two parameters, within the limits of the law: the maximum period of compensation and the waiting period. In a crisis it can lengthen the period and shorten the wait. When the situation improves, it can bring both parameters back toward the ordinary rule, in stages.

On 21 October it considers that the forecasts leave room for this return. It has not set the stages. It will keep watching the economy. It will stay in contact with the social partners and business circles.

Changing the period and the waiting period requires an amendment of the Unemployment Insurance Ordinance. The Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research is in charge of the work. A public consultation on the waiting period is planned for spring 2027. It is not open.

The timetable

The maximum period of 24 months runs until 31 January 2027.

In December 2026 the Federal Council will examine whether the conditions for a further extension from February 2027 are met, and which period should then apply. At the same time it will look at the stages of a return to 12 months during 2027. That meeting has not taken place. No stage is decided.

A return of the waiting period to three days is envisaged from 2028. Until then the wait stays at one day. The consultation planned for spring 2027 concerns that waiting period. That return still requires the amendment of the ordinance.

In 2026 the Swiss economy moved more favourably than expected. The growth figures that follow are forecasts, not a final result. The Confederation's expert group, on 17 September 2026, expects growth of 1.7 per cent in 2026 and of 1.6 per cent in 2027. Unemployment and short-time work are expected to keep falling. The risks named are geopolitical tensions, energy prices and trade policy.

What does not change on 21 October

The Federal Council examined the compensation. It did not change the rules.

• The maximum period stays at 24 months until 31 January 2027. It has not gone back to 12 months.
• The waiting period stays at one day. It is not three days.
• The consultation on the waiting period is not open. It is planned for spring 2027.
• The December 2026 meeting has not taken place. No extension and no stages of a return to 12 months have been settled.
• Short-time work is not abolished. Firms that suffer unavoidable losses of work can still apply.

The compensation does not rewrite the contract. It temporarily covers a large part of the lost hours, under the ordinance in force.

Common questions

• Has the maximum period already returned to 12 months? No. It is 24 months until 31 January 2027. A return to 12 months during 2027 is under examination. It is not decided.
• Is the waiting period already three days? No. It is one day. A return to three days is envisaged from 2028.
• Has a decision of December 2026 been taken? No. In December 2026 the Federal Council will examine whether the period is extended from February 2027, and in which stages to return to 12 months.
• Is a consultation open? No. A consultation on the waiting period is planned for spring 2027.
• Is short-time work abolished? No. Firms that suffer unavoidable losses of work can still apply.
• What share of salary does unemployment insurance cover? The press release of 21 October 2026 does not give it. It speaks of a large part of the pay lost with the hours.
• Where are the application and the accounts filed? Through the eService on travail.swiss.
• What should be gathered before asking the question? The application, the hour accounts, the payslips and the contract.

Avocados AI's Basic plan costs CHF 4.99 a month, the price of a coffee. It is there to organise the application, the hour accounts and the payslips, and to prepare the questions. It does not replace a lawyer's review of the file. The guide to Swiss employment law sets out the frame of the contract, working time and salary.

Sources

Federal Council, press release of 21 October 2026 on short-time work compensation. Expert group of the Confederation, economic forecasts of 17 September 2026. Only the official publication is authoritative.