2023-06-04 04:04:57
AMS boss Johannes Kopf expects a slight economic downturn in the coming months and thus a slight increase in unemployment in Austria, but does not expect the shortage of skilled workers and workers to ease anytime soon. The increasing labor supply can at most provide a selective remedy, and the general weather situation will not change as a result. Kopf sees potential in immigration and female unemployment, among other things.
The labor market is currently proving to be surprisingly robust compared to the ailing economy, a fact that can also be attributed to the labor shortage, said Kopf in an interview with the APA. Employers are currently particularly concerned regarding retaining their staff. “This is what differentiates the current situation from 2015 and 2016. Employers are trying to keep their employees,” said Kopf. On the other hand, the shortage of skilled workers is also reflected in the number of jobs advertised at the labor market service, which has recently risen sharply.
In order to combat the shortage, Kopf initially sees the employers themselves as a starting point. In the midst of the difficult environment, they are called upon to make themselves and their job offers more attractive. What is needed is a flexible and creative approach to the recruitment process, which presupposes that no groups – such as older people, women and migrants – are excluded. A company can significantly improve its position with this alone. According to Kopf, the AMS is becoming more and more a “partner of business” by showing ways for employers to recruit new employees.
The AMS board sees another lever in the area of qualified immigration. He welcomes the recent simplification of the red-white-red card, but now it is a matter of it. In order to assert oneself once morest other countries with higher resources, targeted recruitment campaigns or local cooperation are conceivable. It must be clear, however, that this is not possible without additional financial commitment. And: In any case, the RWR card, which regulates the immigration of skilled workers from third countries, no longer has to be given away “cheaper”. In addition, there is still potential in European countries. On a long-term average, significantly more people came to Austria from EU countries than from third countries, the head of the AMS pointed out.
Kopf also suggested expanding childcare options to enable more women to combine work and family. There is enough potential here “if childcare is finally made available all day and affordable or ideally free of charge”. In many cases, it fails because of the available workforce, which in turn is a question of attractiveness. In general, an ambitious expansion plan is needed, which must also involve the federal states.
Kopf believes that there is room for improvement in the labor market integration of displaced persons from Ukraine. With easier access to the labor market since April, an important step has been taken, but integration continues to be sluggish. Kopf described a situation that might be described as a “waiting dilemma”: Many refugees from Ukraine have great hopes of being able to return to their home country soon. However, this prevents the people concerned from looking for a job and learning the language. The longer the war drags on, the tougher their integration becomes – no matter how understandable the hope of a speedy return is.
According to a recent analysis by the Vienna Institute for Economic Research (wiiw), expellees from Ukraine are mainly accommodated in the low-wage sector in this country. This is not optimal from the point of view of higher qualified people, but it also helps with integration, since further training measures are available at the same time. “Integration that is of a higher quality takes longer,” said Kopf, referring to experiences with the nostrification of Syrian doctors, some of which lasted for years. Against this background, the head of the AMS advocates a special budget to be able to support Ukrainians in the process. Discussions are currently also taking place at EU level regarding which measures can be taken for integration in the long term.
Unemployment figures are expected to rise slightly this year due to the economic downturn. Compared to the previous year, unemployment in 2023 will increase by around 6,700 on average and will affect men somewhat more, according to the labor market forecast published in April by the Synthesis research institute for the AMS. Displaced people from Ukraine have recently been included in the unemployment statistics. In May there were 9,000 additional unemployed and trainees, of whom 4,400 were Ukrainians. With the slightly stronger economic growth momentum in the coming year, the increase in unemployment should slow down. According to the forecast, unemployment will hardly increase in 2024 (+2,900).
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