Compared with other Western European countries, Trade union

Trade union

A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...

s play a rather minor role in Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

with only every fourth employee organized in a union or confederation. The most important organization is the Swiss Trade Union Confederation (SGB or USS) with approximately 385,000 members and 16 individual trade unions. Unia

Unia (union)

Unia is a trade union in Switzerland. It is the largest member of the Swiss Trade Union Confederation with 200,000 members. In addition its collective agreements affect the conditions of a million Swiss workers...

 is the largest of these with 200,000 members. It merged with the Trade union for Construction and Industry (GBI), the Trade Union for Industry, Trade and Services (SMUV), the VHTL, and actions in 2004. The second largest confederation is Travail.Suisse

Travail.Suisse

Travail.Suisse is a trade union in Switzerland. It was formed in December, 2002 by the merger of the Christlichnationaler Gewerkschatsbund der Schweiz and the Vereinigung Schweizerischer Angestelltenverbände...

, which was founded in 2002 in Bern and has approximately 170,000 members.