The Swiss state-owned rail freight operator SBB Cargo is currently undergoing a restructuring amid a tough financial situation and decreasing demand. By the end of 2025, 80 full-time positions will be cut, and by 2030 the company is planning to further reduce its workforce by 20 per cent. Trade union Transfair is now asking for guarantees to safeguard workers and continue the modal shift policy.
Transfair made six demands for SBB Cargo. The first one entails the “creation of a substantial fund for prospects and restructuring”. They are also asking for binding guarantees for job retention within the SBB group for those positions which will be cut from the rail freight branch. To this end, the trade union wants a centralised pool providing support to the 80 unlucky people who will lose their jobs by the end of the year, helping them to find a place within the SBB group.
Two more demands concern finances: “a one-off payment into the old-age capital of the pension fund upon retirement” and financial support for those workers who will be relocated. The last demand made by Transfair concerns targeted investments for training, both when it comes to new skills and requalification. “The job cuts by the end of 2025 are already drastic. We therefore call on SBB Cargo to assume its social responsibility and use all opportunities to maintain jobs within the Group”, said Transfair president Greta Gysin.
Single wagonload funds should also go to the workers
The trade union also pointed out that the money allocated to support single wagonload traffic should be deployed to also benefit the workforce, not just the processes. Switzerland recently decided to significantly invest in this segment, notoriously unprofitable, with 280 million euros each year for four years followed by an additional yearly injection of 65 million euros. “We are experiencing a profound digital transformation in freight transport. This transformation can only be successfully mastered if we also take employees into account, if we offer them additional training opportunities and courses to prepare them for the new requirements”, explained Bruno Zeller, Head of Public Transport at Transfair.