Of . – 12.18.2022 18:27 (act. 12.19.2022 08:55)
ÖGB President Wolfgang Katzian continues to call for a heat package and a rent cap. ©APA/EVA MANHART (symbol image)
In view of inflation, ÖGB President Wolfgang Katzian continues to insist on a heat package and a rent cap, as well as for everyday goods.
That should be funded by the surplus profit tax – one more comprehensive than the government’s “soft” model, Katzian said Sunday at ORF’s “press hour”. He is satisfied with the autumn wage deals, in January the union prepares for the spring round.
Katzian welcomed the electricity price ceiling
Katzian welcomed the electricity price cap. But he demands the same for all forms of heating – gas, pellets, oil, etc. – and also electricity price measures for heat pumps. “People are slowly going crazy” over “immorally high” gas regulations or huge electricity costs because – to “save the world” – they switched to heat pumps, warned the union boss. “We have to think of something,” and not just for vulnerable groups.
So far, “nothing has happened” with the inflation-dampening measures called for by the ÖGB in March – specifically a rent freeze and a reduction in VAT on everyday goods. The only reaction was the ECB’s interest rate hike – and this is still going to cause problems with loan payments. The “watering can” argument against price caps “irritates” him. You have to do something if the price of weekly groceries has increased by 14%. The fact that price ceilings in Hungary were counterproductive – goods became scarce and eventually more expensive – is not an argument for him that general conditions are different there.
Katzian welcomed the National Council’s decision to divert profits from energy companies – but that was just a “profit tax light”. The government did not implement all the options that would have been available, it insisted on the ÖGB model of the Chamber of Labor.
Katzian is completely satisfied with the salary agreements reached
Katzian is completely satisfied with the salary agreements reached, because “the social partnership has done a good job”. He is particularly pleased that – which “wasn’t so easy” – employee representatives managed to avoid one-time payments in lieu of pay increases. Because with one-off cost-of-living bonuses and therefore lower collective wage increases, “a middle-class car would have sunk by the wayside in the life of a young employee.” The fact that the agreements are different – pensions will increase by at least 5.8 percent, railway workers’ salaries by an average of 8.9 percent – is due to the key date for the negotiations. The basis for increases is always the “rolling inflation” of the previous twelve months, and for this year that means “the later the higher” the underlying inflation rate has been.
Katzian continues to demand a heat pack and rent ceiling
The target of 2,000 euros of gross minimum wage is closer. Katzian is convinced that in some sectors – commerce or social economy – you will make it with your next degree. Exact numbers are not yet available; in the summer, 18% of workers earned less. At the moment, the survey will be carried out in January, in preparation for the spring wage round, where the “very clear target of a minimum wage of 2,000 euros” will be pursued. If this is not negotiated, the union will study measures – “the bouquet of what you can do is very large”. Katzian welcomes statutory minimum wages – as in Burgenland – “of course”, but anchoring them in collective agreements is more effective. Statutory minimum wages are often a “deal”, they are used as optional perks – and they can also be lowered again, for example during the financial crisis.
Of course, the shortage of skilled workers was also an issue in the “press hour” with the ÖGB president. Here he pushed for “good working conditions” – not just in terms of wages, but also in terms of planning duty rosters, i.e. work-life balance. In the current phase, it is clear that “many go where they are”. The potential of about 60,000 mothers who want to work again or more should be used, Katzian called for a legal right to care for children. He also warned companies to train more young people again – that is, to hire apprentices.
Asylum seekers must have access to the labor market
Katzian is also in favor of giving young asylum seekers with a good chance of staying in the country access to the job market and internships. About asylum, she also explained that, according to the Refugee Convention, asylum is “non-negotiable”. But a common European approach is needed – and obviously “a new beginning”. It is conceivable for him to process asylum claims at the EU’s external border.
Katzian, 66, president of the Austrian Trade Union Confederation since 2018, will be re-elected in June. “As long as I have the feeling that a fire is burning” and he “has the passion that I want to accomplish something”, he is available for the role – “if the body and family allow it. I have positive signs from both.”
Rendi-Wagner has Katzian’s “full support”
In the SPÖ, Pamela Rendi-Wagner has Katzian’s “full support” as a party leader. He was reluctant to comment on differences with Burgenland party leader Hans Peter Doskozil – and the poll commissioned by the state party, which shows Doskozil better chances in a national election than Rendi-Wagner. “He didn’t say he wanted to be one,” was her brief comment. Until now, the party leader has always been the most voted candidate in the National Council elections, “I don’t see anything that needs to be changed”. And personal discussions shouldn’t be held publicly, but “in the living room,” Katzian said. He attributes the fact that the SPÖ sometimes trails the FPÖ in the polls to the current issues of “Schengen, asylum” – and that doesn’t worry him at the moment either, because there is no election in the room. The ÖGB President assumes that the ÖVP-Green government will continue until the regular date of autumn 2024.
Unsurprisingly, the SPÖ supported Katzian’s demands in the fight against inflation. Instead of one-time payments that “disappear quickly”, the SPÖ is also demanding caps on the price of gasoline, a reduction in VAT on groceries and rent limits – including financing through the “correct” taxation of excess profits, the director stressed. federal administrative Christian Deutsch on a broadcast. He also assured the union “full support” in wage negotiations.
Rejection of Katzian’s statements by the FPÖ
The rejection of Katzian’s statements came from the FPÖ – on the labor market access point for asylum seekers. Since the president of the ÖGB was “completely in agreement with the anti-Austrian and anti-official advances of the ÖVP and the SPÖ”, said the deputy. Club head Dagmar Belakovich. The FPÖ rejects admitting asylum seekers because it could “fuel” wage dumping and act as “another magnet” for illegal immigrants.
The president of the Association of Industrialists, Georg Knill, was pleased with Katzian’s statements about the shortage of skilled workers. He welcomed the fact that “the ÖGB has also recognized that there is a great need for action in this area”. Unlike Katzian – who sees it only as a cost-cutting measure for employers – Knill found it necessary to waive pension insurance contributions for going beyond the legal retirement age. In this way, the existing potential in the labor market can be used, he believes, who also defended the expansion of the day care center.