Apprenticeships and vocational training in Graubünden

Context

In brief

• No federal minimum wage for an apprenticeship
• Maximum working time: 45 or 50 hours per week
• Minimum holidays: 4 weeks, 5 for people under 20
• AVS/AI/IPG: 5.3% paid by the employee

Key facts

The contract is the starting point

There is no federal minimum wage in the Swiss system. Some cantons have their own. For anyone looking for an apprenticeship in the Canton of Graubünden, there is therefore no single national threshold to use as a reference. Before accepting an offer, ask for the pay to be stated clearly in the apprenticeship contract and keep the cantonal rule separate from the terms of the offer.

Finding the position, reading the contract, assessing the pay and checking vocational baccalaureate arrangements are four separate checks. Keeping them separate prevents pay from becoming the only criterion and makes it possible to note the training aspects that still need to be clarified before deciding.

Working hours follow two general thresholds: the maximum is 45 hours per week in industry, offices and sales, or 50 hours in other sectors. Minimum holidays are 4 weeks, or 5 for people under 20. When comparing an offer, these two lines should be kept alongside the pay.

These percentages help explain the move from gross pay to deductions. The AD/AC ceiling and other figures indexed each year must not be turned into fixed amounts without an applicable year. To read a payslip correctly, keep the contract together with the guide to the Swiss payslip.

Operational details

The budget beyond pay

An apprenticeship offer is not measured solely by the stated pay. The cost of living must be calculated by separating the costs that go through the payslip from those that remain the individual's responsibility.

Three levels not to be confused

For a person resident in Switzerland, LAMal/KVG is mandatory and must be taken out within 3 months of arrival. The premium is per capita: it is not a tax and not a wage contribution. Premiums vary by canton and region, while the premium reduction is a cantonal subsidy. In the apprentice's budget, therefore, health insurance must be counted separately from social security deductions. To compare premiums, you can use the tool at cassa malati LAMal.

Taxation also requires a precise distinction. In Switzerland there are three levels: direct federal tax, cantonal tax and municipal tax. Each canton has its own law and its own multiplier; municipalities apply a multiplier to cantonal tax. AFC/ESTV is responsible for direct federal tax and VAT. Cantonal administrations are responsible for the cantonal and municipal levels. UFAS/BSV concerns social security, including AVS/AI/LPP, and does not set taxes. UST/BFS produces statistics and does not set tax rates.

If the apprenticeship position entails relocation, federal tenancy law, CO Art. 253 et seq., is the same in every canton. The security deposit may not exceed 3 months' rent and must be placed in a blocked account in the tenant's name. The landlord's notice of termination is valid only on the official cantonal form; the challenge must be submitted within 30 days to the conciliation authority. These are items to include in the calculation of costo della vita in Svizzera, without making up unavailable local amounts.

Useful planning tools

To estimate your pension strategy, use the pension planner and the pillar 3 simulator.

Key points

From searching to deciding

The process can be organised with a record for each opportunity, keeping verified data separate from questions that are still open.

1. Find the position

Use the job listings as a starting point and collect the sector, stated location, pay, working hours, holidays and reference to vocational baccalaureate arrangements for each offer. Do not turn missing information into an assumption: record it as a question to ask before signing.

2. Read the apprenticeship contract

Before accepting, compare the pay with the maximum working time applicable to the sector and with the minimum holidays. Also ask for the contribution items to be clear and for vocational baccalaureate arrangements to be discussed separately from the simple pay amount. The contract should become the basis of the comparison, not a document to consult after making the choice.

3. Build the gross-to-net calculation

Enter AVS/AI/IPG, AD/AC, LAINF/LAA and LPP/BVG on separate lines. For AD/AC, check the annual ceiling instead of replacing it with an outdated figure; for LAINF, consider the sector; for LPP, use the coordinated salary and the stated age bracket. Figures indexed each year must be checked before preparing the budget.

4. Check insurance and personal status

If the person is resident, record the three-month deadline for LAMal. For an adult, the deductibles are CHF 300, 500, 1,000, 1,500, 2,000 or 2,500; the premium remains per capita and a cantonal reduction may be available. For a foreign applicant, SEM distinguishes the L permit, lasting up to one year, the renewable B permit, the C permit, normally after 10 years of residence or 5 years for EU/EFTA nationals, and the G permit for frontier workers.

5. Keep vocational baccalaureate arrangements separate

Give the conditions, organisation and documents to be checked with the contact person their own section. This keeps the training decision readable even when pay, deductions and the cost of living are calculated separately.

To turn these items into an orderly comparison of gross pay, deductions and monthly budget, use the salary calculator.