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Swiss Welcome
A Guide to living and working in Switzerland
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Other sectors
The service sector is an enormous part of the economy, concerning 61.2% of the labour force and contributing 64.9% of the GNP.

Switzerland is primarily a major power in financial services and the third biggest banking centre in the world. This sector however is undergoing changes, banks are actually laying off employees, something which has never happened before.

As nearly everywhere else in the world, the mobile telephone market is thriving.

Population
The population is 7,120,000, the total surface area is 41,288 sq. kms.
It is varied and is made up of germanophones (64%), francophones (19%) Italians, Yougoslavs, Spaniards and Romanch.
19.3% of the population are foreigners, 1,576 million in all.

The population density is higher than in France, 179 inhabitants per square kilometer (against 106 in France). The majority of the population is concentrated in the towns. The population is mostly aged between 15 and 59.
Life expectancy is 79.16 years.

Women work much less than in the other European countries, due to fiscal reasons for couples. There is a high divorce rate and the birth rate has dropped to its lowest level (1.46).
Language

Four languages are spoken in Switzerland : German, French, Italian and Romanch. The Romanch was recognized by the federal constitution in 1938 as the fourth national language, but not as an official language. It is mainly spoken by the Grisons and is one of the Rhaeto-Romanic languages like Frioulin and Ladin.
Religion

There is freedom of worship and also freedom of conscience. The two main religious affiliations are Roman Catholic and Reformed Evangelists. Other religions exist : Protestants, Muslims, Jews ...

Weights, measures & .......voltages

The metric system is in use. The electrical current is 22 volts, but be careful with the plugs, they are not the same standard as in France.
Money

The official currency is the Swiss Franc. (CHF)

1 Swiss franc = approx 4.30 French Francs
1 euro = 1.5323 Swiss Francs


Climate
Between the Jura and the Alps the winters are severe, the summers hot and stormy. In the Alps the climate varies depending on the altitude, the orientation and the exposure of the valleys. The climate is well-known for its beneficial effects however, and in most of the stations there are theraputic climatology centres.

In the south there is a milder and sunnier climate in the Tessin, influenced by the Mediterranean.

In winter Switzerland is known as a skiers' paradise, in the Jura and the Alps the snow lies for several months and even longer in the higher altitudes. Because of the altitude the ski stations are usually sunny, being above the fog.

Sometimes the ski season can be cut short by a hot dry wind called the foehn, which blows mainly in spring and autumn, but sometimes also in winter. This wind hardly ever blows in the Valais or the Berne Alps but quite often in the Grisons and in the Gorthard mountains. Engadine, in the east has a dry cold climate. The snow usually lies for a few weeks in Berne and Zurich, much less in Lausanne and Geneva, around Lake Leman and in the Tessin.

It is fairly hot in summer, cool in the mornings but it can be very hot by midday. Clouds amass around the mountain peaks. By the end of the day, around 6 or 7pm a cold wind starts to blow. There is also much more rain in summer, end of the day storms in the south and more persistant lighter rain in the north . Temperatures are mild in autumn in the valleys until mid-October.

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