[ad_1]
Explosive revelations about the Swiss National Bank (SNB) shake the Swiss financial center and federal Bern! In an article published Thursday morning in the online magazine “Republik”, Swiss business journalist and BLICK columnist Patrizia Laeri and journalist Fabio Canetg highlighted serious complaints at the Swiss National Bank. Reports made by former and current SNB employees refer to sexism, intimidation and pay discrimination.
Patrizia Laeri highlighted the problem of men at the Swiss National Bank in her BLICK # Break-up column about three weeks ago. Therefore, 81% of managerial positions are held by men. Swissinfo.ch journalist Fabio Canetg reported that on the same day. As a result, numerous women contacted the two journalists.
“We spoke with more than a dozen people. Some of them are currently working at the central bank, others have left or have never accepted a job, “the authors write in the” Republic. ” His statements would show: “It is not just the gender ratio that is pathetic. Everything is much worse. “
SNB’s conservative corporate culture
In the article, the informants, who all want to remain anonymous, denounce the corporate culture of the central bank. He describes them as “Stone Age” and “authoritarian.” An economist who worked at the SNB for years gives a devastating verdict: “In principle, I would have to replace the entire administration floor,” he says. Another witness calls CEO Thomas Jordan (57) “Mr. Conservative. “His charge: Jordan rules with practically unlimited power, people with a” certain “political attitude are being promoted” specifically “.
In the “Republic” several concrete examples are given. One informant, for example, said that she was asked about her political views on the SNB’s investment policy during a job interview. She responded cautiously, saying the investment policy could be “reconsidered.” A few days later, the SNB, which is largely defined by its political independence, rejected it. “The question of the plaintiff’s political stance was clearly inadmissible in this case,” says Martin Farner, an attorney specializing in labor law.
Another previous applicant reported that during the application process she was asked how many children she had and how old they were. The informant applied for a part-time position and previously assured that she could do this workload. Farner, an expert in labor law, evaluates this question in the article as “limit”.
Sexism in the SNB
In other respects as well, sexism seems to be a part of everyday life at SNB. Three independent sources told the authors several cases in which women in the workplace were subjected to so much pressure that they left the office in tears. The description of a former employee is explosive: one of her superiors explained to her during work what her sexual organs are for.
An economist who has worked for the Swiss National Bank for more than two years comes to a damning conclusion: At the SNB, sexism is worse than at any other employer before. For the experienced economist, this behavior has a system. It states that “highly qualified women” have more difficulties than men in the National Bank to move up the career ladder. Overt and hidden sexism is ubiquitous.
Women report harassment
In the case of the economist, it was expressed in the following way: a technically unskilled employee withheld information, stopped her in a joint project and sabotaged her work. When she informed her superior, the three arranged a meeting. This has degenerated into a “humiliation”. The economist was described as emotional. His behavior and body language were also criticized. Ultimately, the boss’s instruction was: You must “recover.”
The economist, who is often quoted in the “Republic” article, should not be left alone with her accusations. Therefore, the authors have heard similar accounts from “different women” from “all departments of the National Bank.” Women describe this behavior as “clear bullying.”
Allegation of wage discrimination
Clearly, the SNB is not only fighting against sexism and harassment, but also against the “classic of inequality”, as the authors call it: wage discrimination. Two independent women report that they earned less than their similarly rated colleagues.
An employee discovered this only years after being employed at Banco Nacional, after a new manager offered her a significant salary adjustment. Her explanations: Her salary was several years below that of her employees. The woman, also an economist, calculates to the “Republic” that the starting salary of her colleagues was up to 10,000 francs higher than their starting salary at that time. In relation to interns, it is said that there is wage discrimination, as suggested by one informant’s reports.
That’s what the SNB says
The Swiss National Bank commented on the various allegations in the article. There is no systematic pay discrimination: “The principle of equal pay applies without restrictions”. The general allegations of harassment, discrimination and sexism described in the article are not known to the Swiss National Bank (SNB), and we strongly reject them, ”writes the SNB.
According to the National Bank, these incidents would be “unacceptable.” All reports are “carefully” controlled and “rigorously” processed. The National Bank does not comment on the specific allegations. The banking council, the official supervisory body, let the “republic” know that nothing should be added to the statement from the SNB media office.
Politics intervenes
For the investigation of Patrizia Laeri and Fabio Canetg, the informants telephoned the authors “at all times of the day and night”, exchanged information with friends and family, and unearthed documents and emails about their cases, according to the “Republic” . keep record.
The revelations now could have consequences. According to the article, women politicians from various parties became aware of the situation in the SNB as a result of the investigation. For the national councilor of the SP, Celine Widmer (42), the gender ratio in the National Bank is “shocking”. “The SNB must immediately show how it can improve these numbers,” he says. Maya Graf, Councilor for Green States and president of the Audit Committee, asks the SNB to act: “The documented grievances must be investigated and rectified,” she says in the “Republic.
The SNB case could soon be negotiated in federal Bern. Several politicians want to raise the charges in parliament. (nim)
