A nationwide campaign has been launched to promote equal pay and combat gender discrimination at the workplace.

As part of a five-year project the government, employers' organisations and trade unions on Monday urged companies to review their salary system on a voluntary basis.

Interior Minister Pascal Couchepin described the launch as a historic step in efforts to implement the principle of equal pay.

Trade union representatives said the campaign was a new and innovative chapter in the fight against unfair working conditions for women.

Employers underlined the importance of the voluntary participation of firms in the project.

A law granting men and women the right to equal pay for equal work came into force in 1996, but a survey found that the principle is not put into practice consistently.

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative