Hi,

I got a job offer recently (or will get) and am wondering what to do about the offer. The company has had loads of turnover in the past two years and its a real possibility that they might just decide to fire me after a few months. The interviews were kind of bull. I have not even met the person I will work for. So hire fast fire fast.

In the end I am afraid that if I work for only six months and then get fired that I will not be eligible to get RAV benefit and by that time my current benefit period will be lapsed. So I will have no support. I would rather continue looking now to get something more stable. Or I can ask for a minimum one year contract.

Does anybody know how these situations are dealt with? In the end I cannot really go without income or benefit as I've got the family to think about. And the hours for the job will be super long, meaning my wife may have to quite her job so that I can do this. So double risk.

Thanks

If you don't accept the job offer then you will get an RAV penalty.

The RAV qualification period is judged on the number of months you have worked over a 24 month period (12 months in 24)...so getting even 6 months of work now will be a minor top up of months in a way of old months that have 'expired'

Also remember it's always easier to find a job when you have a job.

You'd have to find a REALLY good reason for not taking the job. I doubt hiring and firing quickly would count. Take it on and continue looking for something more suitable while you work.

Even if you were to get a one-year contract, it would still have a probationary period during which either you or the employer could walk away.

If you have a one year contract, there is no probationary period unless specifically agreed.

Art. 335b CO (which provides for a probationary periods) only applies to "unbefristete Arbeitsverhältnisse", i.e. non-fixed term employment contracts.

Porsch1909 is correct. They expect you to look to accept employment even if it is not in your specific field. Whilst unemployed you are expected to make a minimum of 8 to 12 applications a month, otherwise they may stop your payments.

I don't know about you but after two months I've already run out of places to apply to.

I also agree it would be easier to take a job and continue to look for the job you really would like (in that case a short notice period might be in your favour).

Depending on how long you were working you receive a percentage of your last salary. If the work you start now pays less than what the RAV are paying now then they will pay the same percentage of the difference between the old and new salary. i.e You were earning 1000 before, now you earn 500. RAV are paying 70% i.e. 700. The difference between old and new salary is 500, so rav will pay 70% of that i.e. 350. Total income 500 plus 350 = 850. I don't know how long that would go on for or how they will classify the new work, but it is a benefit to both you and RAV. Better ask the person handling your case to clraify the details.

Good luck.

Im not sure what you mean by this? If I take the job and work for six months and get fired I will have only two months remaining on my current rahmenfrist (the two years). The next one would require me to have worked at least 12 months straight. So the six months of income averaged with zero for the other six months will make my benefit very low. Or worse I won't qualify for a new benefit because I had only worked six months.

Further, since we have a child and I will need to leave the house at 6 am and return around 10 pm then my wife will have to change her work. She has been 10+ years at her company so giving up something that steady doesnt seem very smart to risk.

Perhaps its better to live with penalty. What is it anyway?

The offer is also about 40% lower than what comparable work would pay (based on the textbook of Swiss salaries my RAV officer gave me). My RAV officer even told me to insist on getting paid the correct level. So it seems really like a difficult decision.

I have been applying for 14 jobs a month since I began months ago. I don't run out of jobs I would do. I would do a lot. But I don't want to be working 60 hour weeks for low pay. This will make interviewing tough. Not to mention job hopping is already a problem.

How does the salary compare with what you were being paid before? In our RAV info meeting one of the items listed as "unacceptable" was a job that paid less than what RAV were paying you. If your case officer said you should ask for the correct salary, then demand it. Maybe that will sort the problem out regarding deciding whether to take it or not. If your case officer is saying you should then they can't complain if the offer is then withdrawn.

I guess that the salary from your wife's job is also unable to support you both so you could become the "house husband" for a while?

I'm sorry to hear you have been searching for almost 2 years. I don't know what your profession is but I understood from my case officer that if I didn't find work quickly then they would organise training in order to overcome my weaknesses. Did they offer you any training programs?

I'm impressed with your application volume! In my case I know I'm being picky with my targets at the moment and being in a niche industry doesn't present many opportunities. A lot of my applications are to companies who aren't even advertising jobs. So far I have one interview next week from such an application (although it did originate from my old CEO asking around on my behalf).

Again, I would be interested to learn if the RAV offered you any retraining? Alternatively did you you go to RAV and say "I want training in XYZ to better my job prospects"?

Thanks for your post. My wife's salary can get us through if I take care fo the child. But if she doesn't have that and I have only this job its tough. Therefore.....I don't want her to quite. But we can't both do the job. Creche isnt open that late.

I have had some of the strategy courses from RAV. They were OK. What I am very annoyed with though is they will not give me more German lessons. They say my German is too good. But, at my level for jobs here your German is better fluent. I'm not really but lately I am just putting that in the application and its going better. So lets see what I can BS my way into.

My case is very strange. My professional background is executive level but I was out two years due to health reasons and only working part time, and not really in my field but just to make some extra money. So my benefit is based on a lower level. And now my professional history is spotty due to the last year's of disruption. Again another reason why I do not want a three month job on the CV, it actually looks bad. I might rather go off the benefit or take the penalty to avoid that.

and its really underpaid, almost insulting. Also when I checked around at other firms. They offered 60% of what the average is. I don't really think one should have to accept, no matter what the pay rate is, if its so far below. Clearly they think I am desperate. I think this is precisely the kind of salary cutting foreign firms do that the government doesnt like. It leads to wage deflation.

I know I know, high level problems. But I am not gonna let the RAV mess up my future career prospects by forcing me into something that looks bad or is with a firm that has questionable history. In fact this is the second round of interviews with them I've had in 18 months. The first group I interviewed with was ALL fired after six months on the job.

And if your boss doesnt even want to meet you in person before you start they can't be too serious.

If you put the original job application on your RAV form , you MUST give them information you receive from the company the SAME MONTH. When you sign the form your declaring that the info is true & complete.

Be very careful, if they find out you have turned down paid work it's very serious.

Penalties range from 1 to 60 days payment. I haven't found how they calculate it yet.

In the handbook under what is not acceptable, is a salary less than 70% of your previosu salary, which from what you are saying might not be applicable here.

It also says if a job will harm your opportunity to re-enter your profession (but with the clause that this should be likely in the near future)

Or if the travel is more than 4 hours per day.

If the salary is less than the standard, you might be able to justify not accepting it buy comparing it with what is on websites such as lohncheck.ch. If your handler is sympathetic you could discuss it.

On another note, when you apply for a job in your actual profession, what looks worse, being unemployed for a long time, or showing that you are proactive and it is your character to seek out work, even if it isn't in your field? I guess that is a tricky area and better answered by an expert.

Seems like the thing to do might be to accept it and keep looking. Though when they find out I'm doing that they might fire me all the same. So what happens then?

This position never went on my sheet. They called me out of the blue from a connection way back before I even knew what the RAV was.

What about jobs where the working hours are regularly past 10 pm or where there is international travel 50% of the days?

Nothing to worry about, if you did not declare the job, what you do is up to you.

Thanks fmf. Seems you are in the know here.

Actually I am thinking about taking it now but will have to see what can be worked out. Question. If I do it I will need to arrive precisely at 9 and leave at 5 because counting the commute this is the only way for me to work within the hours of the crèche. I can't drop the kid earlier or leave her later. They are only ooen 730 to 630.

Question is, when I tell my direct boss this he might rescind the offer, which is right now only verbal. But really I cannot do it any other way. It's still a full working day but like I said this is the type of place where they stay in the office until 10.

So, if I lay out this problem and they revoke the offer what then? Have I broken the rule? Also, is that legal for them to do, revoke the offer because of the need to take care of the child?

Everything is subject to negotiation, you could be sacked with 1 weeks notice during the probation period, so it's pretty irrelevant if they were to withdraw the offer in the first place. Even if the RAV knew, if the hours were too inflexible, they would accept that you could not realistically do the job. What is important is to ask the employer, you wont be the only person at the company with children.

Thanks. And if you are sacked in the first week do you go back on the benefit from before, or is there a waiting period?

The thing is, you could easily take a job just to follow the rules and then get sacked almost intentionally.

The system is fraught with inventive issues. They should rather focus on getting people into the work they want. Bureaucracy......

If the hours are other than the normal office working hours, or there is international travel involved then the job offer would state that. If you couldn't accept them then you simply wouldn't apply for it. It is you who is applying for jobs, RAV doesn't look for jobs on your behalf.

The OP has a child that goes to a creche as the mother is working. The welfare of the child must also be taken into consideration. Alternatively, if the OP has now work but the wife must stop and look for work that allows her to bring and collect the child from the creche this also doesn't benefit the RAV.

I think you should be up-front. If he says sorry, no can do, then it is just like me going to an interview and then for them to say later, sorry we don't find you suitable. I don't see how this is breaking any rules.

Is this the type of job where you could do part (or all) of your work from home, so you could pick up your child and then carry on if required?