Roche is planning to cut jobs in Zug

Roche is the largest employer in the canton of Zug, and a planned reduction in staff is now causing a stir. But the pharmaceutical company is fighting back.
 

Roche and the canton of Zug is a success story: the Basel-based pharmaceutical company laid the foundation for the site in 1969 with the acquisition of a Zug-based company. The Zug branch had 60 employees at the time, but almost 3,000 people work for Roche in Rotkreuz today, primarily focussing on the production of diagnostic equipment. Roche is thereby by far the largest employer in the canton of Zug.

But this symbiosis is now showing cracks: Roche internally announced job cuts last week. According to some reports, a two- or three-digit number of positions in Rotkreuz could be eliminated. This is a potential mass layoff, although negotiations with the unions are not yet complete.

Over the Whit weekend, the "Inside Paradeplatz" portal also reported that, in addition, "hundreds" of external employees were allegedly no longer needed.

Hundreds of millions invested
The company declined to comment when asked. "We assume that a limited number of positions in Rotkreuz will be affected. Consultations with employee representatives are currently underway to minimise any potential impact on employees," stated Roche in response to an enquiry.

The statement explained that Roche is "continuously adapting to a constantly changing environment." Even though the total number of employees remains largely stable this year, there may be job cuts in some areas, "while we increase the number of employees in other areas."

Roche already reduced jobs in Rotkreuz exactly one year ago, and adjustments had also been made repeatedly in previous years. Overall, however, Roche has primarily expanded its operations in Zug in recent years and has invested heavily in the site: the company invested around CHF 860 million in the canton of Zug between 2015 and 2025, and a new production facility will go into operation next year. What’s more, the number of employees has grown by more than 400 in the last five years, to around 3,000. Nationwide, Roche created 500 new jobs last year. Against this backdrop, the company emphasizes that Rotkreuz is and will remain one of its most important locations for diagnostics.

Roche's headquarters in Rotkreuz, in the canton of Zug.                   Photo supplied
 

The Swiss People's Party (SVP) has criticised the job cuts
Criticism of the job cuts is coming from an unexpected quarter: the Zug branch of the Swiss People's Party (SVP) directly addressed the issue in a recent press release titled: "The myth of the skilled worker shortage and the reality in Rotkreuz." The party points out that other pharmaceutical companies in Switzerland, such as Novartis, Pfizer, and Takeda, have recently cut jobs. And the next pharmaceutical giant is now reducing its workforce, sending "long-serving employees to the unemployment office or into early retirement."

The party is also taking aim at parts of the political establishment, as well as at Economiesuisse and the Zug Chamber of Commerce (Wirtschaftskammer), which is headed by Katharina Gasser, the CEO of Roche Switzerland. They suggest that the skilled worker shortage can't be as severe as these institutions claim if, at the same time, "qualified people are ending up on the street."

More than 2,000 people were unemployed and around 3,100 were actively seeking work in the canton of Zug at the end of April. The party argues that the wave of layoffs "demonstrates once again that the corporations, mostly run by expats, show no loyalty to Switzerland as a business location." The Swiss People's Party (SVP) then uses the job cuts to promote its ‘10 million Switzerland’ initiative, which it claims offers "greater protection for our local workforce against unchecked mass immigration."

People close to the company are baffled by the arguments of the SVP. Despite the job cuts, Roche currently has more than one hundred open positions in Switzerland. In any case, Roche has clearly stated its opposition to the initiative. “We rely on recruiting the best specialists from Switzerland, the European Union, and third countries,” the company has stated.

450 trainees in Switzerland
In Zug alone, Roche employs staff from over 70 nations, around 1,000 of whom are EU or EFTA citizens. “At the same time, we are investing heavily in the training and professional development of our employees and, with 450 trainees, are also one of the largest training companies in Switzerland,” the company emphasised.

A “yes” vote on the SVP initiative would have negative consequences for Roche: “If the mutual recognition of product testing is eliminated, our exports to the EU will become slower and more expensive,” the company stated. Furthermore, the threatened loss of the free movement of persons would exacerbate the shortage of skilled workers, while a possible renewed termination of the "Horizon Europe" research program would stifle Swiss innovation.