In Switzerland, many people are currently contracting Sars-CoV-2 again. However, large Swiss employers see themselves well prepared for further waves. You have more than two years of experience with the virus.
Keep your distance, please: If the federal government reintroduces the simpler measures against the corona virus in autumn, it will hardly affect Swiss companies.
The world really has other concerns at the moment, but the corona pandemic is not over yet. Switzerland is again looking at the weekly case numbers with more interest than before. According to the BAG, 55,975 people tested positive for the virus in the week up to July 12, and the trend is still rising. The number of hospitalizations is also increasing at a low level. The new omicron subvariant appears to be quite efficient at evading the immune system. Many were surprised by this summer wave, as one had hoped for a little calm until autumn due to the weather.
Opinions about how problematic the whole thing is vary widely. Is it just stoking panic, and is Corona now just a normal flu? Or is Switzerland once again missing the crucial moment to prepare for the next dangerous wave? Will this produce thousands upon thousands of long-Covid patients in the fall and will the Swiss economy again face major logistical problems because the workforce will be absent in droves?
Sommerwelle: No problem, say the companies
All the same, the current Omicron wave doesn’t seem to have weighed heavily on the economy so far. The German airline Eurowings already cited Corona-related failures as the reason for canceled flights a few weeks agot. However, the general shortage of personnel in the aviation industry is likely to play a greater role. Demand for flights has picked up very rapidly in recent months after a pandemic-related lull; and the airlines did not succeed in hiring enough staff again quickly enough.
In any case, the big Swiss employers are doing well at the moment. The major distributor Coop or the pharmaceutical company Novartis are currently registering more illness reports than usual because of Covid-19. However, all of the companies surveyed emphasize that this has no effect on their business activities. “All our supermarkets are open and we can continue to fulfill our supply mandate,” writes Coop.
The fact that the home office structures that have been set up since 2020 are intact is paying off for the large service companies. If an employee gets infected with Corona and stays at home with no symptoms, they can continue to work without interruption.
Corona autumn: The plans are ready
Companies are also staying calm with a view to autumn. They say in unison that the recommendations and instructions of the authorities are of course followed. In addition, they will, above all, pull their existing plans out of the drawer again. These corona emergency plans have mostly proven to be robust in the previous larger waves, in spring 2020 and in the two winters of 2021 and 2022.
In general, there seems to be trust in the corporate headquarters that the authorities have also learned how to deal with Corona, i.e. that, like last winter, they are relying on targeted measures instead of widespread lockdowns in order to keep the burden on the hospitals under control. This would therefore initially include a mask requirement in well-frequented places or a recommendation to work from home for all those employees who do not necessarily have to do their work in the company.
“We are certainly calling for caution again,” says Stephan Walliser, Head of Human Resources at Baloise Switzerland. And: The hybrid working model could be redesigned to work from home at any time. “Should the situation deteriorate, the protective and hygiene measures introduced during the pandemic can be quickly reactivated within the bank,” writes the Zürcher Kantonalbank.
Currently, most companies limit themselves to a few simple, undisputed measures. There are many dispensers with disinfectant at the entrances to the office buildings and shops. For example, ZKB employees can continue to obtain masks and disinfectants free of charge. Roche is still providing testing facilities to the workforce; it is said that no particular trends can be observed in the demand for these tests.
In addition, pandemic-related expenses continue to be paid in many places: “We always cover any costs for tests, vaccinations or protective material if they arise from a business need,” says the spokeswoman for the consulting firm PwC, “for example if a test or vaccination is required for a business trip are prescribed abroad.»
The fourth vaccination
Slight differences can be identified when dealing with a second booster vaccination: Should the companies actively state their intention to recommend the new booster to their employees? Some companies, such as Novartis, will make a “voluntary recommendation”. Baloise Switzerland also points out that the flu vaccination has been available for years and will also support the corona vaccination in line with the BAG recommendation. Others like Migros emphasize that this is a private matter for the employees.
Many simply say that they are aligned with the BAG and the vaccination commission and simply remove any hurdles for those who want to be vaccinated. In many places you can still get vaccinated during working hours.
However, the answers, which are often generic, also make it clear that other construction sites are currently more preoccupying for Swiss companies than Corona. Above all, high inflation and a possible recession, the shortage of skilled workers and global supply bottlenecks, the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine and the looming gas and electricity crisis.
Employers are very happy that the pandemic has receded into the background for once in recent months. The rifts between vaccination advocates and opponents also ran through the companies themselves. It is to be feared that these rifts will open up again if the number of cases continues to rise. The majority of employers will therefore continue to take a middle course rhetorically: cautious and taking employees’ concerns seriously, but not very actively.