Responsible employer

Its employees are the key to success for the Zurich Airport Group. The daily efforts of 2,376 employees in more than 70 different professions determine the quality of services and the achievement of the company’s objectives.

Relevance

The wellbeing of the workforce is essential if the Group is to achieve its goals. This applies to all employees, irrespective of their background and their position in the company. The Zurich Airport Group not only has a major responsibility for its own staff; its actions also influence the working conditions of employees of its partner companies.

At the Zurich site, Zurich Airport Ltd. took over the provision of support services for passengers with reduced mobility (PRM) or other disabilities from the previous supplier at the start of 2025. As a result, around 100 employees joined Zurich Airport Ltd. The integration was carefully prepared in the reporting year to ensure a seamless transition.

Approach

Safeguarding rights

The Zurich Airport Group respects the core conventions of the ILO (International Labour Organization) and all labour laws applicable locally at its airports. It offers fair pay, higher than the respective minimum wage, and guarantees that no child or forced labour is used in its companies. Measures and precautions relating to the observance of human rights, including in the company’s value chain, are described in a separate section.

Employee representation

The PeV is committed to the rights and well-being of employees and maintains a constructive dialogue with the Management Board. In the reporting year, the PeV worked on drafting the new general employment agreement, which will bring about some significant improvements for all employees (see Employment agreement). The focus was also on shift workers, who were able to express their views in a survey in the reporting year. The PeV subsequently participated in the development of measures to improve working conditions.

While it is possible to contact PeV members verbally, in writing or in person in their offices throughout the year, the PeV also had a stand at the COACH Value Weeks event in the reporting year. Through this event which is held on a regular basis, the company places the spotlight on its corporate values and promotes dialogue and cohesion within Zurich Airport Ltd. at the Zurich site. Finally, in December of the reporting year, the seven members of the PeV from different divisions were newly elected. Four previous members and three new members took up their four-year term of office at the start of 2025.

Collective bargaining agreements

At the Zurich site, the PeV guarantees employees’ right of participation. In Brazil on the other hand, 100% of employees with a local contract of employment are legally entitled to the conditions negotiated annually under collective bargaining agreements. There are no collective bargaining agreements for employees of the Zurich Airport Group in India or Chile.

Attractive jobs

Airports are fascinating working environments involving an enormous variety of occupations. The jobs offered by Zurich Airport Ltd. at the Zurich site are attractive to applicants and cover a broad range of occupations and qualifications. This also applies to the other companies operating at Zurich Airport – a total of over 300 firms employing some 35,000 people between them.

To further increase the attractiveness of its positions, Zurich Airport Ltd. made several changes at the Zurich site during the reporting year, which will take effect in the general employment agreement from 1 January 2025. Measures include reducing the weekly working hours by one hour to 41 and increasing vouchers for discounted lunches. Various salary allowances were also increased (see Remuneration and equal pay).

The majority-owned airports in Brazil were jointly awarded the Great Place to Work label. This label is awarded to companies that have a good workplace culture. Using data from regular employee surveys, action is taken to improve the quality of the workplace on an ongoing basis.

In the reporting year, Zurich Airport Ltd. employed 92 non-guaranteed-hours employees (see Key data) At the Zurich site, these are mainly people who work for VIP services or at service points and info desks, along with tour guides, the majority of whom have already reached retirement age.

Remuneration and equal pay

The Zurich Airport Group attaches importance to offering fair, market-based remuneration: At its Zurich site it pays bonuses above the statutory minimum for working at night and over weekends and holidays. It also awards bonuses for work in especially unpleasant, dirty or noisy environments. All of the above-mentioned allowances were increased with effect from 1 January 2025. In addition, a new lump-sum allowance was introduced to compensate employees with staggered working hours for postponed shifts.

As required by Swiss law, equal pay is measured using a second method – an instrument specifically prescribed by the Swiss Confederation (Logib). Zurich Airport Ltd. last undertook such an analysis of pay equality at its Zurich site in 2021. Calculated according to the Logib method, there was a gender pay gap of 3.5% in favour of men. However, this was within the Confederation’s tolerance threshold of 5%.

Compensation ratio

Pension fund and health insurance

Whereas health insurance at the Zurich site is a private matter of the employees, at the sites in Latin America, the company participates in the premiums for employees’ health insurance. Arranging and paying for health insurance policies for workers is mandatory in Brazil, while the subsidiary in Chile voluntarily pays 70% of these costs.

Additional perks

All Zurich staff enjoy discounts at cafés, restaurants and shops at the airport. In addition, for employees who work more than 50% of full-time hours, Zurich Airport Ltd. pays the full cost of a public transport card for the Canton of Zurich, or contributes to the costs of a cross-zone or general season ticket.

Similarly, employees in Brazil benefit from discounts in stores at the airports. Certain deals for employees have also been negotiated with schools, shops, pharmacies, etc.

Annual leave

Employees at the Zurich site are entitled to at least 25 days of holiday. While the general entitlement is therefore 25 days (for employees up to 49 years of age), it later increases to 28 days (for employees aged 50 to 59) and to 31 days from 60 years of age. Apprentices are entitled to 27 days of holiday.

Employer branding and recruitment

The Zurich Airport Group positions itself as a strong employer in the labour market in order to be able to continue to find enough suitable employees in the future. This is one of the strategic action points for the Board of Directors and the Management Board. The company employs innovative recruitment methods featuring a simplified application process and making quick contact. At job fairs, career and graduate days and local trade fairs, Zurich Airport Ltd. seeks to converse with potential future employees and provides information on current vacancies, training programmes and development opportunities. In the reporting year, the wide range of work placements and trainee opportunities were also specially presented in the form of short videos on social media platforms. To strengthen Zurich Airport’s position as an attractive place to work offering an exciting variety of careers, the Career Days event was held for the first time in the autumn. Eleven airport companies and around 700 guests and potential future employees took advantage of the 70+ different formats offered, including guided tours, information events, live Q&A sessions and the Job Café.

Flexible working hours and remote working

Zurich Airport Ltd. employees based in Zurich benefit from an annual working time model with flexible working hours. This enables employees to work around family commitments, devote time to important public or political office, have time for further education, or simply pursue social activities.

Working outside the office (remote work) is a given for the professional groups for whom this arrangement is possible due to their positions. Zurich Airport Ltd. provides the necessary equipment and organisational structures to facilitate this. However, face-to-face encounters and dialogue on site remain relevant.

Work-life balance

The ability to combine work with family life is especially important to the Zurich Airport Group. In addition to the enhanced flexibility options outlined above, at the Zurich site new mothers receive 16 weeks of fully paid maternity leave, two weeks more than the statutory minimum. An option is also provided to extend this maternity leave to six months by taking two months of unpaid leave, if operational circumstances permit. Fathers and spouses of women who have given birth are entitled to the statutory 10-day leave for the other parent on a full salary.

In the year under review, 34% (previous year 32%) of Zurich-based employees with open-ended contracts worked part-time. To encourage more part-time working at the Zurich site, the company offers the option of a trial reduction in working hours for twelve months. It also supports unpaid leave, allowing employees to pursue life goals such as world travel, longer courses of study, extended maternity or paternity leave, or for any other reason where a leave of absence is desired. After such time spent on personal development, they will return to their jobs with renewed energy and all the more motivated.

Diversity

The Zurich Airport Group considers the diversity of its employees and occupations to be a strength. It seeks to provide equal opportunities to all employees and create understanding and acceptance for their breadth of knowledge, different ways of thinking, origin, age, lifestyles and gender.

Fostering diversity begins already during the recruitment process. Applicants’ qualifications for the job and their alignment with the company’s values will always be the primary criteria for Zurich Airport Ltd. However, criteria such as ethnic origin, age, lifestyle or gender must not lead to any discrimination. Furthermore, most jobs are advertised with a flexible percentage of full-time hours ranging from 80-100% in order to promote working time models such as part-time work or job-sharing.

Diversity in governance bodies and management

The Board of Directors of Zurich Airport Ltd. consists of four women and four men, while the Management Board is made up of two women and five men. This meets the current gender balance requirements for listed companies. At the Zurich site, the proportion of women in management during the year under review was 21.6%.

Training and professional development

Training

The Zurich Airport Group considers basic vocational training to be both an economic necessity and a social duty. It consequently takes responsibility for providing professional vocational training. In the reporting period, the company employed 55 apprentices for 14 different occupations as well as an average of five newly qualified apprentices in a one-year follow-on programme (maximum 12 months) after completing their apprenticeships at the Zurich site. Moreover, a total of 20 interns (university placement) and graduate trainees completed work experience over several months. As at the cut-off date at the end of the year, around 5% of all employees were in vocational education, a work placement or a trainee programme at Zurich Airport Ltd.

When taking on new apprentices, trainees and interns at the Zurich site, Zurich Airport Ltd. seeks to recruit applicants from a wide range of educational backgrounds and school qualifications. For instance, it offers basic training leading to the Swiss Federal Vocational Training Certificate or Diploma which can also accommodate trainees with prior qualifications at various different levels. In addition, the company helps people in various occupations to integrate into the world of work. This includes, for example, providing integration pre-apprenticeships for refugees or people temporarily admitted to the country. In the reporting year, one trainee with a permit for vulnerable persons (Permit S) was accepted for a three-year study programme. In the interests of professional reintegration and with a view to him remaining in employment, a young man who had suffered a prolonged illness was supported by Zurich Airport Ltd. with a short-term internship to assess and reorient himself for a future three-year study programme. He will start his study programme at Zurich Airport Ltd. in summer 2025. In the reporting year, the company also employed two apprentices with hearing impairments in skilled manual trades. Appropriate programmes will enable them to start in or make the transition to the regular labour market.

Apprentices, trainees and interns are assimilated in regular work processes and are given tasks and responsibilities appropriate to their level of training. Zurich Airport Ltd. ensures that its training staff are suitably qualified by providing further training courses along with the resources, expertise and assistance to ensure that training is a success. Wherever possible, the company seeks to promote young workers to suitable jobs within the company.

Career training is also important at international sites. In Brazil, 24-month internships are offered for students at the airports in Florianópolis, Vitória and Macaé. There were six people on this programme in the reporting year. In Macaé, in collaboration with the runway construction company, 20 young adults were recruited from disadvantaged urban districts in the neighbourhood and underwent on-the-job training as part of a six-month programme.

Professional development

As the operator of several airports around the world, Zurich Airport Ltd. additionally offers suitable personnel the opportunity to take up airport-related posts at one of its other locations to enable them to develop their skills in an international environment.

Health management

The Zurich site has a health management policy aimed at promoting and maintaining the health of employees, both at the workplace and in their private lives. This policy includes occupational safety (see Occupational and aviation safety section), i.e. the prevention of accidents and other negative health impacts resulting from work. It also encompasses collaboration with an external specialist (MOVIS) on overall wellbeing and health-related issues. Various guidelines for line managers and internal processes were amended in the reporting year. Furthermore, Zurich Airport Ltd. offers employees an extensive range of opportunities to improve their physical and mental health. For example, the company offers free or discounted sports programmes and free vaccinations against influenza, as well as vaccinations against tick-borne encephalitis, hepatitis A and hepatitis B for exposed personnel and specific travel vaccinations for employees posted abroad.

If they have any personal issues or work problems, employees at the Zurich site also have the option of contacting an external advice center for free and confidential advice. The center can be contacted 24/7 and maintains complete confidentiality – the employer cannot determine who has made use of this service.

At the airports in Brazil, employees must be allowed to participate in a forum called CIPA (Comissäo Interna de Prevençâo de Acidentes de Trabalho), which promotes good health and seeks to prevent workplace accidents and occupational illnesses. Employees elect the members of this body themselves.

Workers in an employment-like relationship

Cleaning workers in an employment-like relationship are used to cover peak periods, and are therefore used mostly during the summer months. These workers are employed by an agency, but are treated the same as Zurich Airport Ltd.’s own employees in relation to working hours and bonuses. In the ICT area, this type of hiring makes it possible to purchase the necessary skills and cope with short-term capacity bottlenecks. These workers are often employees of specialist IT companies, for example.

At the international majority-owned subsidiaries in Brazil and Chile, it is very rare for workers not to be direct employees. There are no such employment-like relationships in India at all.

Key data (as at 31 December 2024)