Job market update · August 2026
Swiss job market in August 2026: what do the figures mean?
The unemployment rate remained at 3.0% in August, while the number of registered unemployed people rose. Job seekers need both facts in context: vacancies reported to regional employment offices do not represent every job advertised in Switzerland.
· Data periods: SECO August 2026 · FSO second quarter 2026
SECO · August 2026
What changed in August?
According to SECO, 141,544 people were registered as unemployed at the end of August. That was 2,268 more than in July and 9,439 more than a year earlier. The unemployment rate nonetheless held at 3.0% month on month; the seasonally adjusted rate was 3.1%.
Regional employment offices (RAV) reported 43,733 vacancies, down 1,423 from July but up 5,868 from August 2025. These are only vacancies reported to the RAV. They are not a count of every online posting and do not indicate whether a role fits your profile.
FSO · Q2 2026
Why does the FSO report a different total?
For the second quarter of 2026, the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) reported 98,700 vacancies at surveyed firms. Employment in the same quarter rose by 2.0% year on year. This survey covers a different population and period from SECO’s monthly RAV figures. The two vacancy totals should neither be added together nor treated as a direct month to month comparison.
The FSO recorded 21.8% more vacancies year on year in industry and construction and 2.4% fewer in services. Those broad sectors cannot establish demand for a particular occupation, canton or individual applicant.
SECO · BFS
Sources and method
Official observations, not a forecast. Source publications checked on 23 September 2026:
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