Uzwil, September 2, 2015 – Following intense negotiations, Bühler has reached an agreement with its Employee Commission to continue extra work hours to counter the strong Swiss franc, but in a reduced form from 45 hours a week down to 42.5 hours a week. The agreement will remain in force until the end of March 2016. “We thank our employees for their commitment, their flexibility, and their contribution to maintaining the competitiveness of our Swiss location,” says Bühler CEO Calvin Grieder.
Bühler has agreed with its Employee Commission on the following measures within the context of the General Labor Contract (GAV): From October 1, 2015 through March 31, 2016, all employees in Switzerland will work 42.5 hours a week. During this period, basically no new staff will be hired. On the other hand, the company has committed itself to refraining from job terminations and reducing wages for economic reasons in Switzerland during the period of the agreement. Moreover, the success sharing opportunity will remain in place.
Bühler responded immediately to the strengthening of the Swiss franc, taking a comprehensive range of measures in order to secure existing orders and projects, to maintain market share and profitability, and to increase productivity. “This program is proving to be effective and can be continued thanks to a solid backlog of orders,” says Grieder. Nonetheless, over the past seven months productivity has not improved to the point that it could offset all the cost disadvantages. It therefore continues to be essential to make an important contribution to competitiveness on the basis of extra work hours. At the same time, projects already initiated to increase growth and to optimize the global production network are being further pushed, says Grieder.
Media contact:
Burkhard Böndel, Head of Corporate Communications, Bühler AG, 9240 Uzwil, Switzerland
Phone: +41 71 955 33 99
Mobile: +41 79 515 91 57
E-mail: media@buhlergroup.com
Gupfenstrasse 5
Uzwil
9240
Switzerland
