Employment in the banking sector: stability despite change and disruption

Employment in the Swiss banking sector is frequently at the centre of public discussions. Media reports of mass layoffs and rising unemployment paint a picture of increasing uncertainty, especially following the takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS and in the context of current debates over regulation. On top of this, figures released by the Canton of Zurich’s Department for Economic Affairs show that the number of jobless bank staff is currently the highest it has ever been. Meanwhile, Swiss Banking’s Banking Barometer 2025 reports stable employment levels. Given this apparent discrepancy, what does the sector’s actual employment trend look like in this time of change and disruption?

Martin Hess, Chief Economist at SBA and author of the article, converses with Ramona Buess, who works in the Economic Policy department, about the employment situation in the banking sector.

Fact check: employment trend in the Swiss financial sector

Banking sector
Employment in the banking sector includes anyone who works at a banking institution. The number of full-time equivalents in Switzerland fell from 104,053 in 2014 to 94,347 in 2024 ¹ (see chart). The drop to 91,904 in 2017 can be attributed to a statistical effect resulting from big banks hiving off staff into separate service centres. The employment figure has risen steadily since then despite negative interest rates, the pandemic and the takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS.

Bank services sector
In addition to the banking sector itself, the bank services sector also includes other activities associated with financial services, including securities and commodities exchanges, derivatives trading, management of investment and pension funds, wealth management and fiduciary and custody services. The number of people employed rose from 145,100 in 2014 to 159,500 in 2024 ², an increase of around 9.9% that illustrates the growing importance of this specialised service sector.

Financial sector
The financial sector includes the bank services sector as well as insurance, reinsurance, pension funds and activities associated with insurance services. Headcount here grew by approximately 5.8% from 214,590 in 2014 to 226,944 in 2024 ³. Its share of the total workforce remained more or less constant at 5%, underscoring the financial centre’s vital importance for the Swiss job market.

Sources: SNB, BAK, FSO

A focus on short-term events skews the bigger picture

Our fact check makes it clear that, in spite of these turbulent times, the employment situation in Switzerland thankfully remains positive. The headcount survey conducted by Swiss Banking suggests that this trend is set to continue in the coming months.

The fact that public opinion is somewhat skewed towards pessimism, meanwhile, stems from the influence of temporary factors on media reporting. The media often focus on short-term events such as redundancies following company takeovers and branch closures. UBS has reduced its global headcount by some 14,000 full-time equivalents, for example, since taking over Credit Suisse in the summer of 2023, and these figures have featured prominently in the media. However, according to Natalia Ferrara, Vice President of the Swiss Bank Employees Association (SBPV), approximately two thirds of the staff laid off have found a new job either at UBS or elsewhere under the ongoing social plan. Such developments give rise to volatility in the short term, and this is reflected in the quarterly figures published by the Federal Statistical Office.

In addition to isolated events like this, the employment situation in the bank services sector is also affected by longer-term structural shifts such as the decreasing importance of physical branches in an increasingly digital world. At the same time, the new jobs being created in fields such as IT, data analysis, digital asset management and fintech cooperations are counteracting a potential downtrend in employment, but the media often overlook this gradual increase in job numbers.

Overall, we can see that short-term restructuring and media hype do not automatically reflect the long-term trend in employment. The number of people employed in the Swiss banking sector remains stable despite a fast-moving transformation process and one-time disruptive events – a clear sign of the sector’s adaptability, innovation and resilience.

^{[1] SNB (2025).}^{Staff by location (domestic/foreign) and gender}

^{[2] BAK (2024).}^{Economic Impact of the Swiss Financial Sector}

^{[3] FSO (2025).}^{Full-time job equivalent per sector (NOGA 64-66)}