300,000 women demonstrated across the country yesterday for this year’s Feminist Strike.
Campaigners point out the continued wage differential with men.
The Swiss Trades Union Federation say women on average earn 43% less than men. That’s due to many women not working full time or taking on low paying jobs.
But even those working comparable jobs earn 18% less than men – which makes Switzerland one of the worst countries in Europe for inequality.
The president, Alain Berset, says women are the victims of discrimination and harassment.
In Geneva demonstrators filled the Plainpalais after marching through the city. The crowd booed outside the Hotel des Bergues as one former worker complained on the microphone about the poor working conditions for cleaning staff. Police were deployed in case of trouble.