There are many questions on salaries and threads also. However I wondered what the position is here with regard to additional benefits (excluding pensions and bonus) such as sports club membership , discounts at shops even the old LV´s etc etc.If you work in a large company what sort of benefits do you get in addition to your salary??

We get discounts at the local fitness centre and cheaper Reka cheques. We also get the chance to win tickets to YB and SCB matches, and BPO concerts. There's other stuff as well, but can't remember.

Oh yeah, performance-related bonuses too.

I was lucky to be allowed to leave at the end of the day. One year our bonus consisted of a $100 American Express gift certificate.

The first job I had in Switzerland (Swiss company) gave me a ceramic onion storage pot for my Christmas bonus. Something like this...

Tightwads.

I would have told them where to stick it!!

It depends very much on which industry you are in & how high up the food chain you are.
Don't expect anything, and hope you don't have too much unpaid overtime. At Christmas
time in Swisscom IT, everyone received an Italian Christmas cake, except temporary
employees whom received nothing.

I don't know. I think I would have liked the onion thing better! At least they though about it long enough to choose something and I could have kept it to remind me of my work colleagues.

A $100 (YES, US dollar!) gift certificate!? I had to pay conversion fees on it and I can't even remember what it got spent on. Probably the electric bill. lol.

Come on. You have to admit mine was worse!

The business model in Switzerland seems to be a little bit different from most countries, where benefits are an expected part of the package. This often stems from tax legislation that makes it easier for companies to offer benefits-in-kind rather than salary.

Switzerland seems to be exactly the opposite -- here, you're paid a reasonably large salary and expected to do with it what you want. Want to lease a car? Go ahead. Want to stay carless? Your choice! Expensive health insurance policy or bare minimum? Up to you.

It used to drive me crazy when I lived in France. We got lunch vouchers. We got vacation vouchers. We got Christmas shopping vouchers. We got book vouchers. I had a top-up healthcare policy, but no choice in the benefits. And inevitably, all the vouchers were for use in stores where I didn't want to shop, either because they didn't offer the products I wanted or the same products were available elsewhere more cheaply.

It's great that they offered subsidized nursery care, except that it was me doing the subsidizing because I didn't have kids. Etc, etc. Basically I was constantly being offered benefits that were of no use to me, but my salary was being reduced accordingly.

All I really wanted was to be given cold, hard cash and allowed to make up my own mind about how to spend it. The system in Switzerland suits me perfectly.

In terms of 'benefits' on offer here in Switzerland, at least at my company, they're limited to Reka cheques and preferential rates with some service providers (insurance, sports club, etc)

OK so far we have:-
Discount at fitness club
Voucher
Jar of pickled onions

Come on we must be worth more than that!!

In terms of food chain I´m up there quite a bit so I was looking for good ideas (not pickled onions).
We are mostly ex-pats so must be worth something right?

As much cheese as I can eat.

One perk I've seen which I think is a good idea but not many companies offer it is if you travel a lot for your job, you are able to keep the air-miles.

Really? I've seen a couple companies that state you have to use accrued miles for work purposes in their handbooks, but I've never seen anyone even think of trying to enforce it...

**COUGH**

English Beer
Port

Come to think of it - you have the best package of all of us!!!

Seriously, in CH I got nothing extra. & in CH, DH get's his health insurance paid & they used to get lunch vouchers but they don't anymore. That's it.

I get a good subsidised lunch, access to a terrible underground gym, health insurance contributions, ZVV subsidy, preferential savings and mortgages, outdoor pool and sports facilities for the summer, a 'green' investment matching facility, share-purchase contribution and a selection of discounts.

So actually a reasonable amount, but not such a wide variety as I was offered with the same company in the UK.

I think you need to think why you have the job and the business needs for your position.

For example i have a better work life balance and a better salary (cost of living and savings).

Because my family is in anothercountry, for example for my it was an enormous benefits if i could take 1 month/year not paid.

But due to business needs i doubt i can get 2 months off (4 weeks paid and 4 weeks not paid).

Would you care to re-phrase that? People might talk.

Amongst other perks like discounts in furniture shops, house hold insurance, reka cheques, I got a bottle of Movenpick wine (very good quality) during Christmas.

The toilet paper is free.

My husband gets free travel on public transport for the sections from home to work or a parking spot if he decides to drive, lunch vouchers, he gets to keep his air miles, discounted gym membership (at the branch closest to work so they can go before/ at lunch/ after work) and we were given a very nice sized Manor gift certificate when we got married (enough to buy a Dyson)