Hi Everyone:

I just finished my PhD in Canada and right away got a sweet postdoc offer in Canton of Bern, Switzerland. The job ad which I applied for was exactly mentioning this: "The position comprises 100% work time and is paid according to the Swiss salary level (ca. 100.000 CHF annually)."

After all hee-hows I received the written contract and got very disappointed: apparently this amount includes 19% of social security (accident, unemployment, and pension) that the employer pays directly. In fact, the real base salary is 82.000 CHF annually but that is not what they said in the job ad. All other social security and tax and insurance will be deducted from 1/13 of 82.000 CHF not 100.000 CHF) .

Could you please be so kind and advise me based on your experience whether that is how they advertise jobs in Switzerland? It is kind of news to me because in Canada & US (for example) they advertise the base salary that one receives excluding the employer's social security pay as opposed to how much it "costs the employer" to hire one!!!

Some help will be greatly appreciated... is it standard? If not, what should I do? I feel very disappointed :\

Salaries are usually quoted gross, and deductions are made from that, so from your opening statement I would say that the ad' is correct. I suggest before you get "disappointed" you do some research on 'life' over here (not just salary), as you may find quiet a few more "disappointments" waiting for you as this is most definately not the US or Canada and things are most definately different.

On the other hand post doc salaries, where explicitly quoted, are almost always in base figure.

Op: 83k is the standard federally regulated post doc salary for 100% work time, and this is the first time I heard details about the 19% social security. 60% work time (~50k) is possible but rare. More than 83k is also possible but is extremely rare.

In addition to disappointments, you may also find a few pleasant surprises such as very low tax, possible child support (~4k pa), and a nice country for sports and mountains.

Congrats on getting this offer, and have fun

Is it a postdoc financed by the EU? Then it would make sense, as they need to pay employer contributions from the gross salary. If it is Swiss, like SNF funded, I am not sure if it is normal.

That said, it is actually a good salary for a postdoc in Europe, and even after tax you will earn a lot more than a lecturer in the UK in many instances (30 to 43k in pounds *before tax!* This is for a job I know someone is applying for).

Thanks guys for your replies. What makes me feel bad about it is that why they mentioned in the job ad which I applied for that the salary is 100K CHF and then they say in the contract that 100K CHF includes the 19% social security that the employer pays directly out of it. Any more clarification on that?

General concept is that both the employer and employee each pay approx. half of the social security dues (i.e. pension, unemployment, accident). However, for the sake of simplicity, the employer deducts the employees' portion from the salary and forwards it (together with his portion) to the relevant institutions/insurances.

So the CHF 100'000 gross salary offered to you consists of your "base salary" and your portion of the social security dues. You actually cost more to your employer because in addition to the gross salary he also matches you social security dues.

Being a foreigner you will probably be "taxed at the source" which means that your employer will further deduct a certain amount from your "base salary" and forward it to the tax authorities. This is also correct since you only pay taxes on your effective income.

Finally, your salary will most likely be paid out in 13 portions (one each month and an additional 13th portion in December). It constitutes and an additional month's salary (which does not make much sense if you are speaking of annual compensation).

In any event, if its a postdoc position at the University of Berne, you can pretty much be sure that everything is above-board.

P.S.: Don't forget about health insurance...

__________________
Liability for any statements hereinabove excluded! - Need a Swiss lawyer PM me.

Mica: Thanks so much for your reply. That is how I thought exactly it should be but isn't that odd though? Their job ad said 100K CHF per year, their written contract, however, types a gross monthly salary which corresponds to the fact that the 19% of employer's contribution was in fact included in that 100K CHF salary that was initially advertised on the web. Do you have any advise for me that what should I do? Can I negotiate that or is it rude to talk about? It's such a big portion to just ignore and say it's fine, you know?

Thanks Niranjan for congratulating me. I still think I have to clarify some parts of this contract stuff. Are you a rock climber? How advanced are you anyways? I am very much looking for a chance to get into this sport. I tried it several times, any info on that? I am sorry that I jumped out like with a different type of question, your photo gave me an idea.

Mica: Thanks so much for your reply. That is how I thought exactly it should be but isn't that odd though? Their job ad said 100K CHF per year, their written contract, however, types a gross monthly salary which corresponds to the fact that the 19% of employer's contribution was in fact included in that 100K CHF salary that was initially advertised on the web. Do you have any advise for me that what should I do? Can I negotiate that or is it rude to talk about? It's such a big portion to just ignore and say it's fine, you know?

You are not getting it, the salary is quoted gross and this has been well explained, the contract merely deatails the breakdown. Whatever is done at home is irrelevant with regard to job offers, you are not being short changed in any way, it is your perception that needs to change. Many, many things will be different here, so if you want to live and work here, will all the non-fiscal benefits, you must embrace the changes as it won't change around you.... no matter how many times you repeat it

Without having seen the contract, I can't say how they've detailed the breakdown of the salary (or thedeductions). However, most likely the 19% is in fact the "employee's contribution" and not the "employer's contribution".

Your chances of negotiating any post-doc salary (unless you are a very highly sought after individual with your choice of pick of several top flight universities) are non existant. University of Berne is public entity and it has a fixed pay schedule (fixed deductions, etc.). Depending on what pay grade you post doc position falls into you will get the amount x.

However, by all means ask for clarification if something is unclear. I would not find it rude after all it is a different country and a different system, and you will need to know how much disposable income you will have in the end and what ancilliary costs you will be facing (average rent, health insurance, length of military service to be done...)

I'm kidding about the last one :-)

__________________
Liability for any statements hereinabove excluded! - Need a Swiss lawyer PM me.