It’s regarding pensions, the health insurance system, unemployment insurance and the often lower tax payments due to tax progression, said Knill on Wednesday at a press conference in Vienna.
The shortage of skilled workers and workers is a major problem across Europe, said Knill. In Austria it is made even worse by the particularly high part-time quota. “We have had a million more people in Austria in recent years and are working less overall,” Knill explained in the “C3 Business Talk” on Tuesday evening. “Of the four million employed people in Austria, 30 percent work part-time.” Of these, 60 percent are women. At the same time, the costs of pensions, health and care would rise. Anyone who says, like SPÖ leader Andreas Babler, that one can afford this welfare state with less work, is a “fairytale uncle,” said Knill.
Working hours have been falling for years
“In Austria, working hours per employee have fallen sharply in recent years – from 2015 to 2023, these working hours fell from 1,520 to 1,448 hours.” The volume of work must therefore urgently be increased.
“Instead of attacking SPÖ chairman Andreas Babler, the IV should finally mothball its far-fetched, age-old arguments once morest the reduction in working hours,” criticized the SPÖ federal managing director Klaus Seltenheim in a press release and referred to “numerous worldwide evidence of the success of reducing working hours.” Pilot projects for the 4-day week showed that productivity increased and sickness absence decreased. FPÖ social spokesperson Dagmar Belakowitsch criticized the demands of the industrial association as “anti-social” and “anti-citizen” and pointed out that single parents in particular had not chosen their form of employment.
Sharp criticism from the unions
Sharp criticism came from the unions. GPA Chair Barbara Teiber saw the demand for higher wage contributions for part-time workers as a “mockery” of women who were often no longer able to work due to caring responsibilities. Also ÖGB Vice President Korinna Schumann described the demand as far removed from the reality of life. Women are often forced into part-time jobs due to a lack of widespread childcare. PRO-GE boss Reinhold Binder saw the IV “sliding into a parallel world” and pointed out that full-time employees in Austria already had the third-longest working week in Europe, with an average of 40.8 hours per week.
According to a study by EcoAustria, which was commissioned by the industrial association, half an hour more work per day in Austria would lead to economic growth of 1.2 percent per year. This measure alone might double economic growth in Austria. The annual taxes would therefore increase by 2 billion euros, which would mean that 30,000 people might be employed in child care or nursing, for example, argues Knill.
Europe and its “homemade problems”
But Europe has even more problems that are causing the EU to fall further and further behind in international competition, said Knill. These are also “home-made issues” such as over-regulation and bureaucratic requirements, high energy, labor and capital costs as well as long approval processes.
Image: (APA/IV-STMK/MARIJA KANIZA)
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Image: (APA/IV-STMK/MARIJA KANIZA)
Europe must appear active and self-confident to the outside world and expand trade agreements with partner countries and regions. Foreign trade policy must also be viewed from a security policy perspective. Europe must be able to defend itself in order to maintain European models of democracy and prosperity. The European internal market must be strengthened and trade barriers removed. This includes simplifying cross-border services and establishing a real capital markets union.
IV General Secretary Christoph Neumayer called for a massive increase in investments in the future topic of artificial intelligence. “Our recommendation in this context is that the 10th EU research funding program be increased by around 100 billion euros, i.e. from 100 billion to 200 billion euros.”
The energy crisis was not handled as well in the EU as the corona crisis. Separating the electricity price zone from Germany alone costs Austria 2 billion euros per year. Unfair practices such as the gas storage levy in Germany and Italy must be stopped.
Nevertheless, the EU is a success story and Austria as an export nation would be unthinkable without the EU, emphasized Knill.
