Economy
Until the middle of the 20th century, Schmitten was mainly a farmers' town. Even today, agricultural products (crop, milk, meat and fruits) still take an important position.
The local small trade and service companies offer a sizable number of jobs as well. Right next to the train station, an important industrial area has developed due to the excellent traffic connections. Today, the following industries play an important role: Construction, transport, wood construction, metal construction, machines, furniture, a large bookbindery, printing, a large dispatching center of a leading national retailers chain, mechanical workplace, cheese dairy and a floor covering company.
In the last decades, Schmitten has also developed into an important residential area for commuters to Fribourg and Bern.
As of 2010, Schmitten had an unemployment rate of 1.9%. As of 2008, there were 118 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 45 businesses involved in this sector. 671 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 36 businesses in this sector. 625 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 93 businesses in this sector. There were 1,737 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 40.5% of the workforce.
In 2008 the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 1,184. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 82, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 622 of which 495 or (79.6%) were in manufacturing, 1 was in mining and 126 (20.3%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 480. In the tertiary sector; 119 or 24.8% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 123 or 25.6% were in the movement and storage of goods, 14 or 2.9% were in a hotel or restaurant, 1 was in the information industry, 27 or 5.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 43 or 9.0% were technical professionals or scientists, 23 or 4.8% were in education and 92 or 19.2% were in health care.
In 2000, there were 901 workers who commuted into the municipality and 1,185 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 1.3 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 18.4% used public transportation to get to work, and 59.7% used a private car.
Read more about this topic: Schmitten, Fribourg
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