Swiss canton of Jura votes to introduce minimum wage

The northern Swiss canton of Jura voted Sunday to introduce minimum wages in every sector, making it the second region of the wealthy central European country to do so.

The initiative, entitled “A Jura with decent wages”, was embraced by 54.25 percent of voters in the canton, with a 38.14-percent turnout, official results showed.

The regional initiative, which was presented in October 2009, calls for the Jura parliament to create a legal basis for introducing minimum salaries in every industry and every company in the canton.

The minimum salary for each sector should be determined by the parliament based on a percentage of the median national salary in that sector.

The initiative provides a two-year implementation delay to allow companies to sign up to collective accords in their sector that already provide for minimum salaries.

The Swiss canton of Neuchatel already voted in favour of introducing a minimum wage in 2011, and similar initiatives are under way in Valais and Ticino.

The cantons of Vaud and Geneva meanwhile rejected such initiatives, also in 2011.

At a national level, a minimum wage initiative was introduced last year and the Swiss are expected to be called to vote on the matter in a few months.