Union Calls for Pay Rise in Trade and Railways

Union Calls for Pay Rise in Trade and Railways

vida leader Roman Hebenstreit. Image: APA/ROLAND SCHLAGER

 

The trade union vida is calling for better pay as collective bargaining negotiations kick off in October and November across various sectors, including railways, roads, trade, warehousing, and cleaning.

The union is seeking compensation for rolling inflation and increased workloads.

“Wage increases cannot be based only on the current monthly inflation rate or the predicted economic downturn,” vida leader Roman Hebenstreit stated during a press conference on Monday.

Specific wage demands will be announced at the start of the negotiations, but this autumn’s focus is on industries like trade and railways, especially after last year’s two-year agreement in the metal sector. The expected drop in Austria’s economic performance this year and a second consecutive year of recession may complicate these talks.

According to a quick estimate from Statistik Austria, the inflation rate in September was 1.8%. Researchers from the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (Wifo) and the Institute for Advanced Studies (IHS) predict consumer prices will rise by 3.1% and 3.0% in 2024, respectively. Depending on the timing of the negotiations, the rolling inflation rate used as a reference can vary. For the period from October 2023 to September 2024, Wifo economist Josef Baumgartner estimates inflation at 3.8%, while vida claims a rate of 4.6% without specifying a time frame.

vida is pushing for a significant increase in minimum salaries for the sectors involved in the negotiations, with union leader Hebenstreit remarking, “With starting salaries around €2,000 gross per month, there is still a considerable need for improvement, given the sharp rise in living costs over the past two and a half years in several industries.” He also pointed out that the government’s anti-inflation payments have “fizzled out,” with rents and food prices remaining “extremely high.”

Currently, the minimum gross salaries for full-time positions stand at €2,000 in the cleaning sector, between €1,923 and €2,591 in the railway sector, €2,025 for retail workers, €2,043 in freight transport, and €2,174 or €2,773 for drivers at private bus companies.

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