ORS takeover at asylum centers: guarantees requested

Context

In brief

• 1 gennaio 2027: ORS takeover expected
• AOZ Ticino employs 120 people at cantonal level
• If Chiasso does not reopen, around 40 employees could be affected
• Assembly organised by VPOD in Balerna

Key facts

• What → ORS taking over assistance at federal asylum centres
• Decision → SEM
• Expected date → 1 gennaio 2027
• AOZ employment → 120 people at cantonal level
• Chiasso scenario → around 40 employees affected if the centre does not reopen
• Assembly → venerdì 25 settembre, Balerna
• Union → VPOD
• Cantonal role → OCST and the Personnel Commission

On venerdì 25 settembre, AOZ Ticino staff gathered in Balerna for an assembly organised by the VPOD union. At the centre of the discussion is the failure to win the contract for providing assistance at federal asylum centres and the planned takeover by ORS, decided by SEM as of 1 gennaio 2027.

The concern relates to three interconnected areas: jobs, employment conditions and the quality of care provided to asylum seekers. AOZ employs 120 people at cantonal level. According to the statement, their experience has ensured operational continuity and expertise in providing assistance for years.

According to the assembly, the change of operator risks having a serious impact on employment. The termination of some employment relationships has already been envisaged. If the federal asylum centre in Chiasso does not reopen, around 40 employees could be affected.

The issue of the collective labour agreement

A second element concerns AOZ's collective labour agreement, which is in force and based on the employment conditions of the City of Zurich. The assembly points to the lack of guarantees that it will be maintained, while ORS has not signed a CCL. The feared consequence is twofold: job losses and a deterioration in employment conditions.

This prospect is situated in a region already affected by employment difficulties and by other cutbacks linked to the Confederation. The statement cites the one involving FFS Cargo between Mendrisio and Chiasso.

The assembly calls on the Federal Council, SEM, AOZ and ORS to fulfil their respective social responsibilities. It demands an immediate dialogue with the social partners, complete information and concrete guarantees for employment and working conditions. It also challenges the approach that rules out recognising a transfer of business to ORS and the consequent transfer of employment relationships, without clear redeployment guarantees, especially in Ticino.

The statement recognises VPOD's national role and, at cantonal level, the role of OCST and the Personnel Commission in the collective representation and protection of employees. Those seeking an alternative job can consult annunci di lavoro.

Operational details

The practical issue for staff is not only who will manage the centers from 1 January 2027. The note separates at least three questions: whether the employment relationships will continue, under what conditions and with what effect on care provision. Placing them on the same level instead obscures the differences between a change of operator and a reduction in activity linked to Chiasso.

A comparison on three levels

This comparison clarifies why the assembly is asking for guarantees before the takeover and not merely information about the name of the new operator. The first scenario concerns the continuity of jobs; the second concerns the content of the work; the third concerns the asylum seekers assisted in the federal centers.

The territorial impact indicated in the source is specific: the possible failure to reopen Chiasso would compound the employment difficulties and the downsizing of FFS Cargo between Mendrisio and Chiasso. The figure of around 40 employees is linked, in the note, specifically to the possibility that Chiasso will not reopen.

According to the assembly, responsibility is shared between federal bodies and operators. For this reason, the request for discussions involves the Federal Council and SEM, but also AOZ and ORS. The trade union representation is twofold: VPOD as the national representative; OCST and the Staff Commission in the cantonal representation.

To better understand the elements that make up an employment condition, one can consult the guide to busta paga svizzera. The link does not replace the guarantees requested by the assembly, but it helps distinguish the employment relationship from the individual conditions.

Recommended tools

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Key points

To turn the assembly’s requests into a verifiable process, the date to keep in mind is 1 January 2027, the scheduled date for ORS to take over, as decided by SEM. The requests set out in the note can be organized into five steps, all connected to employment and working conditions.

The sequence of requests

1. Request an immediate discussion between the social partners, Federal Council, SEM, AOZ and ORS. This is the first commitment highlighted by the assembly in order to achieve the requested guarantees.

2. Obtain complete information about the takeover. The discussion must cover the mandate for assistance, continuity of positions, working conditions and the quality of care, issues indicated in the position statement.

3. Verify the retention of all existing positions. The main demand is the transfer of employment relationships from AOZ to ORS; if necessary, appropriate redeployments in the region are also requested, with the support of external experts.

4. Exclude demotions and ensure duties and conditions that are at least equivalent. The request concerns both the transfer of employment relationships and any redeployment solutions.

5. Keep the case of the federal asylum center in Chiasso separate. The failure to reopen it is indicated as the scenario in which approximately 40 employees could be affected; it is not the same as the operator’s takeover.

The parties to involve

The representation indicated by the assembly is structured across several levels. VPOD is recognized as the national point of contact; at the cantonal level, OCST and the Personnel Commission have a role in representing and collectively protecting employees. AOZ and ORS are called upon to discuss the conditions, while the Federal Council and SEM are reminded of the social responsibilities linked to the decision.

The date indicated for the start is therefore 1 January 2027: the assembly’s demand concerns the guarantees to be defined before the takeover. Anyone who wants to supplement the assessment of the conditions with a review of their own income can use calcolatore stipendio.

Source: tio.ch