The ongoing employment relationship - strategic guide for employers

Probation period - using the first months wisely

Probation is the legally most sensitive phase of the employment: both sides can terminate on a short 7-day notice. Without a specific contract clause, a one-month probation applies automatically (Art. 335b para. 1 CO); the contract may extend it to up to three months or waive it entirely.

Maximum probation is three months. A longer agreement is null and void - and may later mean that a probation termination issued in month 4 is in fact an ordinary termination triggering longer notice.

Extending the probation period

Probation is automatically extended by days of illness, accident or the fulfilment of a non-voluntary legal duty (e.g. military service) - Art. 335b para. 3 CO. Five days out means five more days of probation. Holidays or other voluntary absences, by contrast, do not extend probation.

A contractual extension beyond the 3-month statutory maximum is null and void - even with mutual consent. To test longer, use fixed-term contracts, which trigger other obligations.

Transition to permanent employment

If probation ends and no one terminates, the relationship automatically converts to permanent employment. No new contract or confirmation needed. From a legal standpoint, the 1st year of service now begins, with one-month notice.

Which notice period applies after year 1, 2, 5 or 10 - check it in 30 seconds with the notice-period calculator.

Contract changes - when conditions shift

An employment contract binds both sides. You cannot change it unilaterally - neither pay, hours nor tasks. Each change needs the cleaner's consent. If she refuses, you have exactly two options: accept or issue a modification notice.

Three typical scenarios

The modification notice - last resort

If the cleaner refuses a downgrade, you may issue a "modification notice": ordinary termination combined with the offer to continue under the new conditions. It is treated like any termination - including protection periods and abuse review. A modification notice for a pay cut without economic necessity is often deemed wrongful (BGE 123 III 246).

Pay rises - when and how

There is no obligation to grant regular raises - unless anchored in the contract or NAV. In practice, adjustments after 1, 3 and 5 years are common, plus an inflation adjustment every 1-2 years. Never raising risks losing her - the market for reliable domestic help is tight.

When a raise makes sense

• •After probation ends, if you started below market wage
• •Annually on a fixed date (e.g. 1 January), to align with cost of living
• •When taking on additional tasks or growing responsibility
• •When the cantonal minimum wage is adjusted (Geneva, Jura, Ticino, Neuchatel, Basel-Stadt)
• •After 5 years of service as a loyalty bonus

How to communicate

In writing, dated, with clear old and new hourly wage (or gross monthly salary) and effective date. Both sides sign a short addendum. The increase must appear on the next payslip and be reported to the compensation fund - otherwise you under-pay AHV contributions. More on payslips.

Holidays & public days - what really applies

Holiday entitlement is among the most often miscalculated items. Art. 329a CO mandates at least four weeks per year - and more for some age groups. Simplified procedure or hourly pay change nothing: every hour worked generates entitlement.

With hourly pay, the holiday supplement appears on the slip: 8.33 % for 4 weeks, 10.64 % for 5 weeks. Note: the supplement is not a holiday "payout" but the wage for non-worked holiday days. Holidays must still be effectively taken.

Public holidays - cantonal differences

Only 1 August is a national holiday (Art. 110 Constitution). All other holidays are cantonally regulated. Zurich has 8 statutory holidays, Geneva 9, Ticino 14. If the cleaner would have worked on a holiday, lost wages must be compensated when the holiday is a statutory rest day (Art. 329 para. 3 CO by analogy).

Hourly: if she cannot work due to a holiday, you owe her wages for those hours. A flat 3 % "holiday supplement" on each hourly wage is the canton-neutral solution - covers about 8 holidays on average.

Taking vs. paying out

Principle: holidays are to be taken, not paid out (Art. 329d para. 2 CO). A payout without actual time off is null - the cleaner can later claim the real days. Only exception: end of employment, where untaken days are compensated.

For cleaners working in several households (e.g. 4 hours a week with you): as the employer you set the timing of the holidays - taking the cleaner's wishes into account (Art. 329c para. 2 CO). In any case you must make sure the holidays are actually taken.

Maternity of the employee

Your cleaner's pregnancy is not a dismissal opportunity - it's a planned pause. The legal duties are clear and breaches expensive. Here's the essence.

Three legal blocks

Return and reorganisation

After 14 weeks of MSE the cleaner may return on the same conditions - same wage, same hours, same tasks. If you've hired a replacement, you must terminate that contract or renegotiate hours with her. The returning employee has priority.

Practical tip: 4 weeks before return, agree in writing on hours, tasks and any change requests. Document the conversation - disputes about reintegration are common.

Detailed guide on pregnancy in private households: Cleaner is pregnant - and on maternity allowance: MSE for household helpers.

Warnings & conflicts

The written warning is the legal bridge between tolerance and termination. Immediate termination without a prior warning is usually unjustified - the employment does end at once, but you owe wage replacement and possibly compensation (Art. 337c CO). Ordinary termination without a warning is legally possible, but it weakens your position in later disputes.

Escalation steps

Securing evidence - the decisive point

In a dispute you must prove what happened and when. Recommendations: archive WhatsApp threads (screenshots), keep daily notes in a conflict folder, document incidents in a dated file. A list of "missing" items that was never created won't help in court.

A frequent flashpoint is unjustified absence - what applies for illness, medical certificates and continued pay is in the guide cleaner is sick.

A conflict without documentation is legally almost invisible - a conflict with seamless documentation is legally almost impossible to lose.

Damages - who is liable, who pays

The expensive vase, the scratched wooden floor, the missing watch - household damages are unavoidable. Legal treatment follows clear rules. Three scenarios, three paths.

Personal liability insurance - the key bridge

The cleaner's personal liability insurance covers damages caused at work (provided the policy doesn't exclude professional activity). She files with her insurer - you submit the repair invoice. Before hiring, request a copy of the policy; without one she is personally liable, which becomes problematic at high amounts.

Your own household contents insurance often covers items damaged by third parties - ask your insurer. With either insurer: report damage immediately, take photos, keep repair invoices.

Wage deductions - when allowed, when not

You may NOT simply deduct damage from the wage, even when fault is clear. The wage is largely protected against set-off (Art. 323b para. 2 CO). Wage deductions are allowed only:

• •With written consent of the cleaner
• •With a final judgement or settlement
• •For advances that need repayment

Unilateral deductions are a contract breach on your side and can lead to her terminating immediately - with wages owed until the next ordinary date.

Detailed guide on damage liability: Damage & liability of the household helper.

Frequently asked questions