AI boosts efficiency but increases pressure on Swiss telecom workers

AI is changing daily work across Swiss telecoms and ICT, and employees are feeling the strain. A study by consultancy Ecoplan, commissioned by trade union Syndicom, found that workers are completing tasks more efficiently while facing heavier workloads, greater uncertainty and rising pressure.

The findings were presented in Bern on September 7, 2026, with representatives from Swisscom, Sunrise and Microsoft attending. They arrive as companies deploy artificial intelligence in customer service, technical operations, administration and other areas of the digital economy. The study does not describe a wave of whole professions disappearing. It identifies a more immediate shift: AI is altering the tasks that employees perform and the skills they need to perform them.

That distinction matters for Switzerland’s labour market. Telecoms and ICT underpin banking, manufacturing, public services and communications across the country. Changes inside these companies can spread quickly through the wider economy.

Employees interviewed for the research reported efficiency gains, but also more demanding work and less certainty about what comes next. Their message is practical. They want training that keeps pace with the technology, information about how employers use AI and a meaningful role in decisions that reshape their jobs.

The study describes a task revolution rather than wholesale job replacement. Artificial intelligence is significantly changing the day-to-day activities of telecom and ICT staff, according to the research presented in Bern. Employees still rely on professional knowledge, judgement and experience, even as software takes on more analytical and repetitive work.

That combination can increase output without reducing the intensity of the job. Workers may handle more cases, review more automated recommendations or remain responsible for decisions produced with the help of systems they did not design. The study links the spread of AI to higher demands and a growing workload, alongside efficiency improvements.

Continuous professional development therefore becomes a workplace issue, not simply a personal advantage. The research identifies skills, judgement and ongoing training as crucial to managing the transition. Syndicom wants employers to provide stronger opportunities for professional development and to explain both the opportunities and risks of AI in clear terms.

The union also wants employees involved in designing innovation processes. That demand reaches beyond consultation after a system has been selected. It seeks a role for staff who understand how telecom work functions in practice, including where automated tools produce unreliable or incomplete results.

Syndicom has put concrete conditions on the rollout of workplace AI. Its package calls for strong rights to participate in the introduction of artificial intelligence, job security and reduced working hours. The union also wants binding data protection standards and a clear allocation of responsibility when an algorithm makes a mistake.

Those demands reflect the practical risks raised by the study. If an automated system speeds up work, employees need to know who checks its output and who remains accountable for the final decision. If companies collect new forms of workplace data, staff need enforceable safeguards. If digitalisation produces productivity gains, Syndicom argues that workers should share in those gains.

Carol Ghiggi, Syndicom’s central secretary for the ICT sector, said the use of AI must be socially sustainable and prioritise workers’ interests. The union’s proposals would give that principle a place in employment rules and workplace negotiations.

The debate also concerns working time. Efficiency gains can support shorter hours, but only if employers and employees agree how the benefits are distributed. Without such arrangements, faster tools can simply raise expectations and expand the volume of work assigned to each person.

Swisscom and Sunrise say responsible adoption depends on training, governance and room for judgement. Anne-Thérèse Morel of Swisscom said the company uses AI under principles covering data protection, ethics and governance. She also pointed to investment in training, reskilling and a socially sustainable transition.

Andreas Gertsch of Sunrise emphasised the value of allowing employees to experiment with new technologies. He paired that freedom with a demand for critical thinking, so workers can assess AI-generated results and apply them responsibly. Their comments address a tension already identified by the Ecoplan research: staff must learn new tools while carrying responsibility for the quality of the work those tools support.

Representatives at the Bern event agreed that constructive dialogue between employers and unions is essential while Switzerland lacks specific legislation covering these workplace questions. Company rules will need to explain how AI is introduced, how information is shared and how employees can challenge or correct its use.

For workers, the next phase will be measured in everyday decisions: whether training is available before tasks change, whether managers explain new monitoring systems and whether human judgement remains visible in the process. The telecom sector is helping define standards that other Swiss industries may soon face.