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Today in Switzerland For Members

Today in Switzerland: A round-up of the latest news on Wednesday

Helena Bachmann
Helena Bachmann - [email protected]
Today in Switzerland: A round-up of the latest news on Wednesday
Vaccination prevents serious Omicron-related cases, experts say. Photo by SHVETS production from Pexels

Find out what's going on today in Switzerland with The Local's short roundup of the news.

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Four more cantons reduce the length of quarantines

Solothurn, Schaffhausen, Glarus and Basel-Country are shortening the duration of the quarantine for contact cases from 10 to seven days.

This measure came into force on Tuesday in Glarus, starts today in Schaffhausen and Basel-Country, and on January 10th in Solothurn. Almost all the cantons have now cut their quarantines to seven days. Only Graubünden and Aargau have not yet made this change.

Note that people who have been tested positive must continue to isolate for 10 days.

READ MORE: Covid-19: Most Swiss cantons shorten their quarantine requirements

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The verdict is in: Vaccines are effective against severe forms of Omicron

There has been much uncertainty about the level of protection that vaccines offer against the Omicron variant.

But a new study published by the British health authorities confirms that the complete vaccination against Covid-19 offers strong resistance against severe forms of the disease as well as hospitalisations.

This is confirmed by a Swiss epidemiologist Didier Trono. "The figures indicate that with a third dose of the vaccine, we have 88 percent less chance of ending up in hospital if we are infected with Omicron," he said.

READ MORE: Why hospitalisations in Switzerland are not increasing despite soaring infections?

Speaking of variants…what about the new ‘French’ mutation?

Should people in Switzerland be worried about the variant recently discovered in the south of France?

According to Samia Hurst, vice-president of the Covid-19 Task Force, this as-yet unnamed strain doesn’t seem to be stronger than either Omicron or Delta.

"It needs to be watched, like other similar variants, but at the moment there is no reason to be particularly worried about this one”, she said.

That’s because “ it doesn't seem to be spreading yet. It may be one of those variants that don't emerge”.

She added that the mutation of a virus is a natural process but not all of them are a cause for concern.

Owning a Swiss property is getting even more expensive

In the wake of the corona pandemic, the value of residential properties in Switzerland rose sharply in 2021. And real estate prices are likely to continue to go up throughout 2022, according to new Swiss Real Estate Index by Immoscout24.

This price increase is justified on the one hand by the changed housing needs due to the pandemic and on the other hand by the solid economic development.

In addition, immigration is continuing and the supply of land is becoming increasingly scarce, the report noted.

This chart shows the process per square metre in various regions of Switzerland, and by how much they increased last year.

Image: Immiscout24

READ MORE: ‘Lex Koller’: What are Switzerland’s rules for foreigners buying property?

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Half of Switzerland’s workers are ready to change jobs

Fifty percent of Swiss workers are open to new professional experiences or are already actively looking for a new job, according to a new survey from the consulting firm Randstad.

Wanting higher salaries is only one of the reasons for a job change, however.

“The pandemic has prompted 52 percent of Swiss employees to rethink the balance between private and professional life”, the survey found.

“Individuals' expectations of their personal and work goals have changed permanently. People are much more aware of their wants and needs and also willing to make changes to balance different aspects of their life”

 

If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]

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