By how much will minimum wages increase in 2027?

In the hotel and catering sector, the social partners have set a 0.6% increase in minimum wages for 2027. The joint note explains that the adjustment corresponds to the expected increase and that the decision is based on the SECO inflation forecast. The source also quantifies the new amount foreseen for Cat. II.

What will Cat. II's salary be?

For an employee with a federal certificate of practical training or equivalent qualification, referred to as Cat. II, the gross monthly salary will increase from CHF 4,070 to CHF 4,094. The source presents these amounts as a concrete reference for the adjustment of minimum wages expected in the hotel and catering sector for 2027.

When will the seasonal contract increase go into effect?

For seasonal contracts, minimum wage increases will take effect at the beginning of the summer season. The winter season ends no later than April 30, 2027, while the summer season begins the next day, May 1, 2027. This is the time scan indicated in the joint note.

Who agreed to the increase?

The agreement was communicated by the employers' associations GastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse and Swiss Catering Association and by the workers' representatives Hotel & Gastro Union, Syna and Unia. The organisations had already agreed on the mechanism last year and linked the 0.6% to the expected increase.

Hotels and restaurants: minimum wages +0.6% in 2027 (cross-border guide)

Di Redazione Frontaliere Ticino · Published on 28 September 2026

Swiss hotel restaurant dining room prepared for service

In the hotel and restaurant industry, minimum wages will rise by 0,6% in 2027: for Category II, from 4'070 to 4'094 gross francs.

Context

In brief

Sector minimum wages: +0.6% in 2027
The increase corresponds to expected inflation
Cat. II: from 4'070 to 4'094 gross francs
The summer season will begin on 1 May 2027

Key facts

Sectors → hospitality and catering
Increase → 0.6%
Category → Cat. II
Gross monthly salary → from 4'070 to 4'094 francs
Forecasts → SECO inflation
End of winter season → 30 April 2027
Start of summer season → 1 May 2027

The minimum wage in the hospitality and catering sector will increase by 0.6% in 2027. The decision was set by the sector’s social partners and corresponds to expected inflation, according to a joint statement issued in Basel.

The agreement was communicated by the employer organisations GastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse and Swiss Catering Association, together with the worker representatives Hotel & Gastro Union, Syna and Unia. The adjustment concerns the sector’s minimum wages and stems from a mechanism that the employer organisations and trade unions had already agreed on last year.

The decision is based on the inflation forecasts of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, identified in the source by the acronym SECO. The increase is therefore presented by the social partners as an adjustment to the expected inflation for 2027.

The decision of the social partners

For an employee holding a federal certificate of practical training or an equivalent qualification, i.e. Cat. II, the gross monthly salary will rise from 4'070 to 4'094 francs. The change therefore concerns a minimum level expressed in gross monthly francs and is not described in the source as a general change to all wages in the sector.

The move from 4'070 to 4'094 francs is the only quantified wage level in the statement. The statement identifies the profile through the federal certificate of practical training or the equivalent qualification and lists the amounts as gross monthly salary.

In the statement, the parties specify that this agreement allows them to «focus on negotiations concerning the new collective labour agreement».

Operational details

The mechanism already agreed

The increase announced for 2027 does not stem from negotiations started from scratch. The employers' organizations and the sector's trade unions had already agreed last year on the mechanism used to determine the adjustment. The decision now communicated therefore applies a criterion already shared by the social partners.

The parameter referred to is the expected rise in prices. SECO's inflation forecasts form the basis on which 0.6% was set for the minimum wages in the hotel and catering sector. The source does not attribute the announcement to a single person: it presents it as a joint position of the employers' associations and workers' representatives.

On one side are GastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse and Swiss Catering Association. On the other are Hotel & Gastro Union, Syna and Unia. These are the organizations listed in the joint statement accompanying the agreement and that indicated the correspondence between the increase and the expected rise in prices.

The effect on Cat. II

The most concrete point concerns Cat. II. The reference is to an employee with a federal certificate of practical training or an equivalent qualification. For this profile, the gross monthly amount rises from 4'070 to 4'094 francs. The difference reported by the source is therefore between two gross monthly amounts, while the percentage set by the social partners is 0.6%.

The agreement is not presented merely as a numerical update. In the statement, the parties explain that defining the minimum wages makes it possible to focus their efforts on negotiations concerning the new collective employment agreement. The source does not indicate the outcome of those negotiations and does not provide any other amounts for categories other than Cat. II.

The picture described therefore remains limited to the announced data: a mechanism already agreed, an inflation forecast from SECO and the adjustment of the minimum wage planned for 2027.

Key points

When the seasonal increases will take effect

For seasonal contracts, the increase in minimum wages will not come into force through one single, undifferentiated date. The joint note indicates that the increases will be applied at the beginning of the summer season.

The timeline reported by the social partners is precise: the winter season ends no later than 30 April 2027. The summer season begins the following day, on 1 May 2027. For seasonal contracts, therefore, the start of the summer season marks the entry into force of the minimum wage increases.

The succession of the seasons

The calendar indicated in the statement directly links the end of the winter season to the beginning of the summer season. 30 April 2027 represents the latest date indicated for the winter season; 1 May 2027 is the start date of the summer season. The source does not add any further dates or conditions for applying the increase.

The follow-up to the agreement also concerns the new collective labour agreement. Defining the increase allows the social partners to focus on the related negotiations, but the statement does not anticipate its contents, deadlines or results. Nor does it indicate any other seasonal periods beyond those linked to the end of winter and the start of summer.

The next step explicitly mentioned is therefore twofold: for seasonal contracts, applying the increases at the beginning of the summer season; for the signatory organizations, continuing negotiations on the new collective labour agreement. The dates communicated for the seasonal calendar remain 30 April 2027 and 1 May 2027.

Source: tio.ch

Frequently Asked Questions

By how much will minimum wages increase in 2027?: In the hotel and catering sector, the social partners have set a 0.6% increase in minimum wages for 2027. The joint note explains that the adjustment corresponds to the expected increase and that the decision is based on the SECO inflation forecast. The source also quantifies the new amount foreseen for Cat. II.
What will Cat. II's salary be?: For an employee with a federal certificate of practical training or equivalent qualification, referred to as Cat. II, the gross monthly salary will increase from CHF 4,070 to CHF 4,094. The source presents these amounts as a concrete reference for the adjustment of minimum wages expected in the hotel and catering sector for 2027.
When will the seasonal contract increase go into effect?: For seasonal contracts, minimum wage increases will take effect at the beginning of the summer season. The winter season ends no later than April 30, 2027, while the summer season begins the next day, May 1, 2027. This is the time scan indicated in the joint note.
Who agreed to the increase?: The agreement was communicated by the employers' associations GastroSuisse, HotellerieSuisse and Swiss Catering Association and by the workers' representatives Hotel & Gastro Union, Syna and Unia. The organisations had already agreed on the mechanism last year and linked the 0.6% to the expected increase.