In contrast, the unemployment rate in Vienna was 10.7 percent. If it is below 3 percent, experts speak of full employment because there is always a certain number of unemployed people due to job searches and seasonal work.
“Surprisingly stable situation”
The regional manager of the AMS Tirol, Sabine Platzer-Werlberger, spoke of “virtually full employment” in view of the low unemployment rate and despite rising unemployment figures. The situation can still be described as “surprisingly stable”. “Here and in Salzburg, a lot depends on the summer season that is just getting started – over the summer months we expect unemployment to be traditionally very low and employment to rise further. Never before have so many people been working in Tirol as right now,” reported the AMS regional manager.
Labour shortage as a challenge
The shortage of workers and skilled workers is the biggest challenge on the Tyrolean labor market “currently and especially if the economy should pick up once more next year following a delay.” Fast placement, qualification, mobilization of the “hidden reserve,” immigration, etc. – all of this is necessary to counteract it. “The shortage of workers is not a new phenomenon in Tyrol, but now it affects all sectors and areas. And it is here to stay,” emphasized Platzer-Werlberger. According to a recent AMS report, 8,013 vacancies were reported in Tyrol at the end of June.
More job offers than unemployed
In Salzburg, there are already more job openings than unemployed people. “We still have 71 more vacancies than unemployed people,” said Salzburg’s AMS boss Jacqueline Beyer. At the moment, Salzburg is also feeling the effects of a slowdown, but from a low level. “Compared to Upper Austria, we have little industry, and we are stable in tourism.” Nevertheless, Salzburg not only has a shortage of skilled workers, but also a shortage of labor. Tourism has been experiencing this for a long time, but this is also due to the very strong growth of this sector. Beyer sees the solution in increasing the workforce potential, for example through asylum seekers. In tourism, there are now a number of asylum seekers in apprenticeship training. “It is increasing, but it is taking longer.”
Even if the economy grows significantly more strongly once more next year, the labor shortage in Salzburg can hardly be greater than it is now, according to the head of the Salzburg AMS. But the situation needs to change. “Currently, only 57 percent of people over 55 are employed, and for women, the figure is only 49 percent. We need to create good conditions so that people are happy and healthy to stay in work longer.”
Labour market reform called for
When asked regarding the situation on the labor market, Peter Buchmüller, president of the Salzburg Chamber of Commerce, puts his finger on an open wound. “The parameters are no longer right. We urgently need labor market reform,” he said. On the one hand, the labor force potential in Austria must be increased: “One third of people in Austria only work part-time – two thirds of them have no childcare obligations.” More full-time work, better childcare, better tax conditions for pensioners who want to work, “and, and, and…”, said Buchmüller.
The Chamber President also sees an urgent need for action in the area of foreign workers. “We need to get more red-white-red cards as quickly as possible, not just for skilled workers, but also for workers.” At the moment, this quota is being “limited by people who have no idea. We need the people our company needs, not those that are prescribed to us. We urgently need more people from third countries so that Germany doesn’t take them away from us.”
Stagnation with very moderate growth
When asked, Tyrol Chamber of Commerce President Barbara Thaler (ÖVP) stressed that they are currently “very close” to full employment. This is due on the one hand to demographic change and on the other hand to the tourism sector, which is very employment-intensive in Tyrol during the summer months. For the coming months, however, Thaler is mainly expecting a phase of stagnation with very moderate growth of a maximum of one percent. It is to be expected that the unemployment rate will settle at around 4.1 percent or slightly higher. In addition, the lack of work and skilled workers continues to be a problem for many Tyrolean companies.
IV wants to reduce non-wage labor costs
Tyrol’s Industrial Association President Max Kloger, meanwhile, cited a decrease in the number of unemployed in industry and construction as a positive development – compared to January of this year. However, given the difficult conditions for companies, it cannot be ruled out that the number of unemployed will rise once more in the coming months, Kloger echoed Thaler and spoke of still high raw material and energy prices, high labor costs due to “historically high collective bargaining agreements” and weak demand for industrial goods at home and abroad. In order for industrial companies to remain competitive, the Tyrolean IV President called for a “massive reduction in non-wage labor costs so that employees have more net left over from their gross and our companies have more room for maneuver in pricing.”