The employment offices are mainly integrated within the Departments of Economic Affairs in the cantonal administration, and bear various names such as...
• Cantonal Department of Industry, Commerce and Labour (KIGA)
• Office for Economics and Labour (AWA)
• Cantonal Employment Office
• Employment Office
• Labour Market Office
The cantonal employment offices report to the regional employment centres (RAV), and generally to the public unemployment insurance funds. Together with the logistics centres for labour market measures (LMM) they ensure that a sufficient range of services is available at Labour market measures. As cantonal labour market authorities, they perform the duties assigned to them by federal law in the areas of labour market and unemployment insurance, as well as additional duties under cantonal law.
The cantonal employment offices are the instances that grants permits for private job placement and temporary HR recruitment (temporary work), within the framework of the federal legislation on job placement. Generally they are also responsible for examining applications for work permits for foreign nationals from the aspect of the labour market. They are also responsible for executing the associated measures based on the treaty with the EU on the free movement of people, and for measures to combat illegal employment without a permit. The cantonal employment offices also exercise supervision over the municipal employment offices, or the first instances for the unemployed to register at.
To promote the cooperation among themselves and with SECO, the labour market authorities are members of the Association of Swiss Labour Market Authorities (VSAA).