Cross-border commuters questionnaire: salary okay but too much commuting

Context

TL;DR

• 1.542 online responses collected in May 2026
• 73% satisfied with the salary
• 31,7% spend more than an hour and a half commuting every day
• 76,9% would not move to Switzerland

Key facts

• Research → «Working across borders: conditions, needs and prospects of cross-border workers»
• Responses → 1.542 workers
• Period → May 2026
• Presentation → Saturday, October 24, at 9.30
• Location → Centro Congressi Ville Ponti di Varese
• Promoters → CISL dei Laghi, CISL Sondrio, CISL Piemonte Orientale and OCST
• Coordination → BiblioLavoro, study center of CISL Lombardia

Almost 32 thousand cross-border workers leave the province of Como every day to work in Switzerland and return in the evening, crossing the border again.

The promoters are CISL dei Laghi, CISL Sondrio, CISL Piemonte Orientale and the Ticino trade union OCST; scientific coordination was handled by BiblioLavoro, the study center of CISL Lombardia. In May 2026, the online questionnaire collected responses from 1.542 workers. The stated objective is to go beyond official statistics by giving cross-border workers a direct voice on how their work is changing, in order to turn this feedback into concrete proposals.

Satisfactory salary, more complex picture

Salary prospects are among the main reasons for choosing Switzerland: 73% of respondents view their salary positively. But 48,4% state that their purchasing power has declined in recent years.

Moreover, 55,6% believe that, for the same duties, their remuneration is lower than that of a Swiss resident; among those not covered by a collective agreement, the share reaches 63,4%. In addition, 42,7% report having experienced at least once treatment they perceived as discriminatory because they were a cross-border worker. The questionnaire thus provides a picture that includes declared satisfaction, purchasing power, salary comparison and perception of discrimination, without reducing the experience to a single indicator.

Operational details

Employee benefits, commuting and teleworking

The responses collected show that the assessment of cross-border work does not depend solely on salary. Employee benefits receive a decidedly critical assessment: 58,9% of respondents are not satisfied with them. For the majority, contributions for transportation, meal vouchers or production bonuses are lacking. The research identifies these as concrete parts of the work experience, alongside salary.

The cost of time

The questionnaire describes time as one of the least visible costs of cross-border work. 31,7% of workers spend more than an hour and a half a day commuting between home and work. 73,2% mainly use private cars. The source does not provide a breakdown of commuting times by province or border crossing: the available figure therefore concerns all respondents.

Teleworking introduces a separate comparison. Only 37,4% work for companies that allow it for cross-border workers, but among those who use it, 95,2% approve of it, almost unanimously.

The comparison between the 69,5% of those who work remotely and the 51,8% of those who work exclusively on-site describes a difference in responses concerning work-life balance. However, on its own, it does not demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship: the source presents percentages referring to different groups and not a forecast of the future effects of teleworking.

Key points

Health, social security and life choices

Issues that remain open

87.8% of respondents consider the so-called “health tax” penalizing. As for the second pillar, there is a strong need for information: 69.2% state that they have little or no knowledge of how their pension fund operates. This is a figure concerning the knowledge reported by respondents, not a technical assessment of individual pension positions.

The propensity to move to Switzerland is limited: 76.9% would not consider this possibility. The publication therefore regards cross-border employment as a stable life choice, not a step toward emigration.

In addition to the analysis, the publication devotes a second section to trade union proposals: extend collective bargaining in Switzerland; implement the Statute of Cross-Border Workers and the NASpI already provided for by Law 83/2023; raise the tax threshold for telework; strengthen the service network between OCST and CISL, including INAS and CAF.

The scope of the research remains precise. The text concerns workers in Switzerland and people employed in the Canton of Ticino, but it does not present findings on the G permit, AVS, LAMal, tax rebates, withholding tax, Brogeda or double taxation. The second pillar is mentioned, but no technical data on the LPP or references to INPS are provided. These topics therefore cannot be presented as findings of the questionnaire: the source documents salaries, welfare, commuting, telework, health, social security and intentions to move.

Source: comozero.it