Conditions of employment for substitute/auxiliary/backup musicians in professional orchestras/ensembles in Switzerland

The Union Suisse des Artistes Musiciens (USDAM) is the Swiss musicians' union, and since 1914 has represented members of Swiss professional orchestras, as well as intermittent and freelance professional musicians.

Switzerland's orchestral and ensemble landscape is highly diverse, and includes not only the 13 full-time professional orchestras, but also a large number of part-time/project orchestras and ensembles of all kinds, which are important employers for the many intermittent professional musicians in Switzerland who would not exist without them.

USDAM has signed collective bargaining agreements with the full-time orchestras, guaranteeing good working conditions for their permanent members.[1].

The terms and conditions of employment of intermittent workers (replacements, back-up) in these orchestras are governed by the tariff contract concluded between the USDAM and the orchester.ch employers' association.

For the remuneration of services provided by musicians, insofar as these are not subject to the orchester.ch-SMV tariff contract or to a CLA providing for other provisions, the USDAM has issued tariff orders with minimum rates for the whole of Switzerland. From the USDAM's point of view, these rates represent the minimum remuneration enabling professional musicians, who in most cases have undergone higher training, to lead a decent, if modest, life. This is why the USDAM demands that all professional part-time/project orchestras and ensembles respect the tariff orders.

Unfortunately, this is not the case in many places, and since the pandemic we have seen a further deterioration in this respect in many cases. The willingness to respect music industry professionals in the same way as those in other sectors when it comes to remuneration seems to continue to decline. There's no other explanation for the fact that today, lottery-funded orchestras and big-name sponsors in Switzerland's most expensive cities are advertising for professional musicians, offering them CHF 125 for a three-hour rehearsal and CHF 150 for a three-hour concert. No reimbursement of expenses, not even the mandatory vacation allowance in accordance with art. 329ff CO. For highly qualified work carried out by university-qualified professionals, including individual preparation of the works to be performed, the acquisition and maintenance of sometimes very expensive instruments, and much more besides[2].

For years, USDAM has been pointing out these grievances in writing and orally to the employers who pay such low wages, but most of the time we don't even receive a reply. We are therefore compelled to make public the tariff situation in Switzerland in a transparent manner, as we cannot tolerate such a lack of respect, which is in part even financed by taxpayers.

After all, in its message on culture 2025-2028, the Confederation also wants to "guarantee fair remuneration for cultural players, improve their working conditions and equal opportunities".[3]. The National Cultural Dialogue (NCD), which brings together the Confederation, cantons and cities, has also presented recommendations on the remuneration of artists in Switzerland. In this document, "the DCN therefore calls on the collective responsibility of cities/communes, cantons and the Confederation to strengthen the professionalization and recognition of the work of cultural actors, on the one hand by respecting, applying and enforcing the present recommendations for the proper remuneration of cultural actors, and on the other hand by continuing efforts to improve their economic and legal situation."[4]

Since the beginning of March 2025, USDAM has been writing to all known professional part-time orchestras and ensembles, asking them to provide us with the rates applied or to confirm the information we have received from the musicians. Some provided us with this information, others did not, even after a third letter. Still others let us know that, for various reasons, they were unwilling to do so, or that they rejected our approach. For this reason, the rate card currently contains only those orchestras/ensembles that have provided information themselves, or for which we have up-to-date data from the musicians. Missing orchestras/ensembles will be added at a later date.

Full-time professional orchestras were also contacted and asked to confirm that they complied with all points of the current tariff contract. On the one hand, because a Swiss tariff map without these most heavily subsidized orchestras would be incomplete and unfair to the others, and on the other, because we have long been aware of sometimes systematic violations of certain elements of the tariff contract.

Rate card

It shows how intermittent workers are remunerated in Switzerland's various orchestras and ensembles. A distinction is made between :

• Full-time professional orchestras(orchester.ch members): these orchestras must comply with the pricing agreement between orchestre.ch and USDAM. If they comply with 100 % in all areas, they are colored green, otherwise red. They are represented by a circle
• Part-time professional orchestras/ensemblesThe USDAM requires these orchestras/ensembles to comply with tariff order A (minimum rates). If the weighted evaluation gives a result of 100 % or more in tariff compliance, they are colored green, between 75 and 99 % orange, below 75 % red. They are represented by a diamond

Weighting for part-time professional orchestras

Recognizing that sufficient funding for professional orchestras is not an easy task, the most frequent core elements of performance fees, such as rehearsals and performances, are weighted much more heavily than less frequently used elements, such as extensions. Similarly, compensation for travel time and all elements related to expense reimbursement are weighted relatively lightly.

Performance fees for rehearsals and performances (tariff order A, item 1a) and allowances for soloists/secondary instruments (function supplement, tariff order A, item 1b) are weighted four times, all other items in tariff order A once. Calculation examples can be found on the web page cited below.

General

A + in the icon means that the orchestra/ensemble in question offers services that go beyond the tariff contract or tariff order A, e.g. salary continuation in the event of illness.

All information comes from the orchestras or musicians concerned. The corresponding source is indicated. All orchestras/ensembles were invited to confirm or correct the data available. Some took this opportunity, others did not, even after three invitations.
In the event of incorrect information, we ask the orchestra/ensemble concerned to provide us with the correct information immediately. The same applies to freelancers who find discrepancies with the pay slips of the corresponding orchestras/ensembles.

Fare card : https://smv.ch/fr/services/calculator/rates/smv-tarifampel

[1] For historical reasons, the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana's contractor is the SSP, while the Basel Symphony Orchestra's contractor is jointly the USDAM and the SSP.

[2] You can find more information here: https://smv.ch/fr/services/calculator/ In general, we can assume that a three-hour service in an orchestra requires at least three additional hours of individual preparation. This represents 6 hours of work, which in the case of the orchestra mentioned above corresponds to an hourly wage of CHF 21 to 25, not including travel time.

[3] Federal Council press release of 1.3.2024 : https://www.news.admin.ch/fr/nsb?id=100259

[4] https://www.bak.admin.ch/bak/fr/home/themes/dialogue-culturel-national.html