Switzerland’s labour market weakened further at the start of 2026. The unemployment rate rose to 3.2% in January, up 0.1 percentage points from December, marking a second consecutive monthly increase after stagnating in November, according to data released by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
The number of people registered with regional employment offices climbed by 3.4% over the month to 152,280. At 3.2%, the jobless rate is at its highest level since October 2020, when a series of increases eventually pushed unemployment to 3.7% in January 2021 before a gradual decline set in later that year.
Adjusted for seasonal effects, however, the unemployment rate edged down by 0.1 percentage points to 2.9%.
All age groups affected
Unemployment increased across all age categories. Among 15 to 24-year-olds, the number of registered unemployed rose by 1.0% to 13,785, lifting the youth unemployment rate to 3.2%. For workers aged 50 and over, the rate also increased by 0.1 percentage points, to 2.9%, with 42,029 people registered—up 3.4% on the month.
The number of jobseekers reached 236,319, a monthly rise of 2.0%, corresponding to a jobseeker rate of 5.0%. At the same time, vacancies reported to employment offices jumped sharply, rising by 36.1% to 48,904.
Regional disparities persist
Regional differences remain pronounced. The canton of Jura continued to record the highest unemployment rate, at 5.5%, up 0.1 percentage points. Geneva and Valais both saw increases of 0.2 points, to 5.2% and 4.1% respectively, while Vaud’s rate edged up to 4.9%.
Rates were unchanged in Neuchâtel (4.8%) and Fribourg (2.9%). In the Bernese Jura, unemployment rose by 0.3 points to 4.9%. In Switzerland’s two most populous cantons, Berne and Zurich, unemployment increased in line with the national average, to 2.4% and 3.0%. Appenzell Innerrhoden remained the least affected, with an unchanged rate of 0.9%.
Short-time work
Short-time working arrangements affected 11,607 people in January, up 7.6% compared with September, the latest month available after a three-month reporting lag. The number of firms using such schemes rose by 9.6% to 775. In November, 2,832 people exhausted their entitlement to unemployment benefits, down 12.7% from the previous month.
Short-time work is a labour-market scheme designed to prevent layoffs during temporary downturns. Firms reduce employees’ working hours when demand weakens instead of dismissing them. Workers receive pay for the hours they still work, while the state compensates part of the income lost from reduced hours—usually through the unemployment insurance system.
Payment delays continue
Problems linked to the rollout of a new unemployment benefit payment system have yet to be fully resolved. By the end of January, 85% of the expected payment volume for the month had been disbursed, SECO said.
Newly unemployed workers have been particularly affected. Between February 1st and 5th, unemployment funds paid out CHF 102.1m in benefits. Since the launch of a new system on January 6th, performance has improved but remains below target, SECO noted, adding that it is working closely with cantonal authorities and unemployment funds to stabilise the system. No estimate was provided of how many claimants are affected.
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