Swiss trade union Unia has spearheaded the creation of a new website inviting anyone in the country to post their salaries, accompanied by a selfie. The website zeigdeinenlohn.ch (meaning show your salary), went live last week, and already has about 500 people posting their details. Talking ‘salaries’ is a huge taboo in Switzerland:
It’s a huge taboo for the Swiss, talking about salaries. We’re trying to break this taboo with the website.
Individuals posting information come from various sectors, ranging from an oil inspector bringing home 37,000CHF (€32,369) per month and a cleaner binging home a mere 3,200CHF (€2,800).
The purpose of it all? Unia hoes that their website will start a conversation about salaries and give both men and women a better idea about how much money people in the same role, and with similar hours, make. In doing so, the union hopes it will curb experiences of pay discrimination.