„Verhalten gegenüber den Bewohnern und den Arbeitskollegen war stets einwandfrei“
What this German phrase in your Swiss Arbeitszeugnis (employment reference letter) really says about you – and which grade it hides.
Literal translation vs. real meaning
Literal translation (what DeepL tells you)
“...behaviour towards residents and colleagues was always faultless...”
What Swiss HR actually reads
The intentional omission of superiors signals a strained relationship with management, corresponding to grade 4.5 on the Swiss 1-6 scale.
Hidden rating
Satisfactory (grade 4.5)
German rating: Befriedigend (Note 4.5)
What it means in detail
While the phrasing sounds positive regarding residents and colleagues, leaving out supervisors is a classic code in Swiss references. HR managers read this omission as a sign of friction or conflict with leadership. Under the principle of goodwill, employers use such selective phrasing to signal interpersonal issues without breaking the rule of benevolence.
How to fix it
To upgrade the reference to a top mark (6.0), the wording can be strengthened, for example by inserting "stets" or "jederzeit hervorragend" alongside including superiors.
Suggested wording (German, for your HR department)
Zur Aufwertung auf die Bestnote (6.0) kann die Formulierung verstärkt werden, z.B. durch Einfügen von „stets“ oder „jederzeit hervorragend“.
Hidden criticism detected (grade 4.5)
Under Art. 330a of the Swiss Code of Obligations (OR), a reference letter must be true but benevolent. Coded downgrades rarely come alone – the same letter often contains further codes or omissions.
Check your whole certificate freeTelling silence & social conduct
Verwaltungsgericht ZH VB.2019.00365 vom 9. Mai 2020, E. 2.4
The Administrative Court of the Canton of Zurich describes the practice of “telling silence” (beredtes Schweigen): if a quality that would normally be mentioned is left out, the reader concludes that it is missing. Leaving out one group of people when describing conduct (e.g. superiors) is generally read as a hint at negative behaviour.
Read the full decision (German)„Darunter gehört, wenn etwa bei der Verhaltensbeurteilung nur das Verhalten zu Mitarbeitern und Kunden erwähnt wird, nicht aber jenes zu Vorgesetzten.“
Unofficial translation: “This includes, for example, a conduct assessment that mentions behaviour towards co-workers and customers, but not towards superiors.”
Related phrases
- Verhalten gegenüber Vorgesetzten und Arbeitskollegen war stets einwandfreiSatisfactory (grade 4.5)4.5
- Verhalten gegenüber den Mitarbeitenden war stets einwandfreiSufficient (grade 4.5)4.5
- Verhalten gegenüber Kollegen war stets einwandfreiSufficient (grade 4.5)4.5
- Verhalten gegenüber den Arbeitskollegen war stets korrektSufficient (grade 4.0)4.0
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Check your whole certificate freeRead this entry in German: Bedeutung von „Verhalten gegenüber den Bewohnern und den Arbeitskollegen war stets einwandfrei“