Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Swiss Employers’ Associations, Federation des Entreprises Romandes (FER) and Union Suisse des Professions Libérales (USPL) have advocated economic refunds for self-employed workers. On 16 April 2020, the Federal Council published an Ordinance establishing that self-employed workers who have been affected by the crisis have access to the loss of earnings allowance (‘Assurance Perte de Gain’). The allowance corresponds to 80% of the average gross earnings (up to maximum 196 CHF per day) for a period of 2 months retroactively starting on 17 March 2020. To be entitled to the allowance, workers earning must not exceed 90,000 CHF per year. This additional economic support amounts to 1.3 billion CHF.

FER Secretary-General, Blaise Matthey, considered that the situation was problematic and underlined the potential problems related to the lack of income for self-employed workers. He commented that "[a]s they are not entitled to any unemployment insurance benefits, they could quickly go bankrupt. In exceptional circumstances, exceptional responses are needed. This is about avoiding numerous bankruptcies, with what it means in economic, human and financial terms. Let’s adapt to these special circumstances by being more flexible”. FER appreciated the regulatory update, even if the “consequences of the threshold are to be deplored”.

As reported in its press release of 16 April 2020: “overall, USPL is relieved by the decisions of the Federal Council that has avoided an existential threat for thousands of professionals”. These categories of self-employed were enabled to go back to work as of 27 April 2020.