Job search in Switzerland: where and how to find matching jobs

Where open jobs are listed in Switzerland

There is no single site that lists every job. Companies choose where to advertise: some on a large portal, some only on their own website, some in both places. That is why it pays to know several sources and to check the two or three most important ones for your occupation regularly.

The Job-Room is the public job portal of Swiss unemployment insurance on arbeit.swiss, with jobs from all industries. If you are registered with the RAV (regional employment centre), you also see jobs that companies have to report before they appear anywhere else (more on that below).

The same job is often listed on several portals at once. You still only apply once, using the channel the job ad names: by email, through the company’s application portal or by post. Also check the date of the ad. Older ads are sometimes already filled, even if they are still online.

• Large private job portals with jobs from all industries.
• The Job-Room of arbeit.swiss, the portal of the public employment service.
• Job portals of cantons, municipalities and the federal administration, for jobs in public administration, hospitals or schools.
• For teachers, dedicated school portals where schools advertise their jobs.
• Company career pages, often with jobs that are listed nowhere else.

The hidden job market: jobs without an ad

Not every job is advertised. Many companies fill jobs through recommendations, from applications they already have on file, or internally. Smaller businesses in particular often place no ad at all and ask around in their own circles first.

You reach these jobs through your network and through unsolicited applications. Tell former colleagues, acquaintances and previous managers what you are looking for. And write to companies you would like to work for, even without an open job ad. How that works is explained in the guide to unsolicited applications, linked at the bottom of this page.

Your network is not a favour you have to beg for. Many people are happy to help if they know exactly what you are looking for. So name your occupation, region and workload in one sentence, instead of saying vaguely that you are looking for “something new”.

Search terms that help you find more

The same job has different names depending on the company. A “Sachbearbeiterin” (administrator) may also be called “Kauffrau” (commercial employee), “Mitarbeiterin Administration” or “Assistentin”. If you search with only one title, you miss many matching ads. So write down three to five terms: your occupation, common synonyms and related roles you could also do with your experience.

Pay attention to the language of the region. In the Romandie (French-speaking Switzerland), job ads are mostly in French, in Ticino in Italian, and in most other regions in German. If you want to work there, also search with the title in that language, for example “employée de commerce” or “impiegata di commercio” instead of “Kauffrau”. Leave additions like “m/w/d” or “(w/m)” out of the search field. They appear in titles but don’t help you find anything.

Many portals also search the text of the job ad. So search in addition with skills, software or licences that are in demand in your occupation, such as “SAP”, “Staplerausweis” (forklift licence) or “Lohnbuchhaltung” (payroll accounting). That way you find jobs whose titles you would never have typed in yourself.

Setting your search area and workload

Before you search, decide how far you want to commute each day, and think in travel time rather than kilometres. Twenty kilometres on a direct train line is often faster than ten kilometres with two changes. Most portals let you search within a radius around a place. Choose a slightly larger radius and then sort by hand.

Swiss job ads usually state the workload as a percentage, for example “80%” or “60% to 100%”. Don’t only search with exactly your preferred workload. Many companies are open to a different workload if the person is right. If the ad gives a range, say clearly in your application which workload you have in mind.

• Set a maximum travel time each way, by train, bike or car.
• Choose two or three places as centre points if you can commute in several directions.
• Note your preferred workload and the lowest workload that still works for you.
• Check whether working hours like shifts, weekends or working from home are an option for you.

Job registration requirement and RAV: what applies to you

In occupations with an unemployment rate of at least 5% across Switzerland, employers must report open jobs to the RAV. These jobs first appear in the protected area of the Job-Room. Only five working days later may the company advertise them elsewhere. Jobseekers registered with the RAV therefore see these jobs earlier than everyone else.

The list of occupations concerned is set anew every year. You can find the current list and a check-up tool on arbeit.swiss. If you are registered with the RAV, a daily look at the Job-Room is especially worthwhile.

If you receive unemployment benefits, you also have to prove that you are looking for work, and this already applies during your notice period. How many efforts per month are needed, you agree with your RAV advisor. How to fill in the RAV job search form (716.007) is explained in the guide to the form, also linked below.

Keep going: search regularly rather than all at once

New jobs are added all the time, and some are gone again after a short while. So someone who spends a whole day searching once a month sees less than someone who takes a quick look several times a week. Set up job alerts on the portals so new ads matching your search terms arrive by email.

Keep a simple list of your applications: date, company, job, contact person and status. That way you know where to follow up, you don’t apply twice for the same job, and you have everything together if the RAV asks for proof.

• Set up job alerts on the two or three most important portals.
• Plan fixed search times in your week, for example twice briefly instead of once for a long time.
• Review your search terms after a few weeks: which ones bring matching jobs, which don’t?
• Add every application to your list on the same day.