Working in an international context
The administrative, technical and scientific staff of ETH Zurich work at various locations in Switzerland. The actual place of work (departments, institutions) is stated under point 4, “Work area” in the employment contract. The regulations for employees in Singapore are subject to the provisions of the Singapore-ETH Centre (ETH SEC). The Office for Faculty Affairs is responsible for ETH professors.
Employees may occasionally be required to travel abroad for professional reasons. If an employee's work is no longer paid in Switzerland, ETH runs the risk that such employees will no longer be covered by Swiss social security.
A posting applies when employees are sent by their employer to spend a certain amount of time to work in a different country to the one in which they usually work. The employment relationship between the employer and the seconded employee remains in place during the posting, and the employee continues to be covered by Swiss social security.
The overview below will help you to determine which cases are considered postings, and how you will be required to proceed depending on the situation.
An employee is required to spend more than one month abroad for professional reasons. Professional reasons include research work for ETH Zurich abroad, or work at a foreign university on behalf of ETH, etc. How should employees proceed in this case?
Certain prerequisites apply in the case of a posting. Please contact HR Consulting and provide the following details to determine whether your assignment should be treated as a posting:
- First name/surname of the employee concerned
- Nationality of the employee concerned
- Country to which the employee will go in order to carry out the work
- Duration of foreign assignment
- Will this employee continue to work at ETH following the foreign assignment?
HR Consulting will then decide whether the assignment should be treated as a secondment. If so, they will request a posting certificate from the relevant authority, which will be passed on to the employee.
An employee is undertaking a business trip or attending a congress/conference abroad. Does anything need to be done?
No, this is not a posting. In such cases, HR Operations does not need to be informed. The employee continues to be covered by Swiss social security. Foreign authorities may occasionally request a posting certificate from the first day. In such cases, the certificate can be issued retrospectively.
The information below refers to flexible working abroad. All information relating to issues within Switzerland can be found here.
What is the difference between working from home and remote working?
When working from home, employees work at home as opposed to at a contractually stipulated location at ETH Zurich. “At home” means the employee’s main place of residence in Switzerland (apartment, house, etc), and for cross-border commuters their main place of residence outside Switzerland.
Remote working is performed neither at ETH premises nor at the employee's home (main place of residence).
What does “working from home” mean for employees outside Switzerland?
Administrative, technical and scientific employees of ETH Zurich are required to live in Switzerland. With the exception of cross-border commuters, ETH does not employ persons who have their main place of residence outside Switzerland and thus live and pay tax in this second country. This means that ETH employees who work from home do so from their main place of residence in Switzerland, as registered with the authorities.
Please refer to working reamotely for further information.
An employee wishes to go abroad for private reasons (e.g. to visit family) and work from there for an extended period. Is this possible?
No. This would be considered mobile working abroad, as the reason for the stay abroad is not professional in nature. This type of working is not encouraged at ETH Zurich. Administrative, technical and scientific employees of ETH have a public employment contract, and as such their place of work is Switzerland.
The employee (e.g. doctoral student) would like to finish writing their paper (dissertation) abroad. Is this possible?
No. This would be considered mobile working abroad, as the reason for the stay abroad is not professional in nature. This type of working is not encouraged at ETH Zurich. Administrative, technical and scientific employees of ETH have a public employment contract, and as such their place of work is Switzerland.
Our department employs a cross-border commuter who lives in Lörrach (Germany) and works in Basel. Are cross-border commuters able to work from home?
Special provisions apply to employees resident in other countries. These provisions should be clarified with HR Consulting.
I would like to appoint someone who is resident in an EU/EFTA country and employ them directly in their country of residence. Can I do this?
No, such appointments are not permitted, except for cross-border commuters. Administrative, technical and scientific employees of ETH Zurich are required to live in Switzerland. With the exception of cross-border commuters, ETH does not employ individuals who have their main place of residence outside Switzerland and thus live and pay tax in this second country. The work must be performed in Switzerland.
Can I allow an employee to work at home, or outside Switzerland, over the holiday period and return to ETH Zurich at the beginning of January?
Questions such as these must be clarified with HR Consulting.