In the run-up to the Chamber of Labour elections in April, the WU’s Staff Councils hosted an information event on February 14 about the role and tasks of the three employee representative bodies in Austria: the Chamber of Labour, the Trade Union and the Staff Council. The common tenor was: Participation in the upcoming election to the Chamber of Labour is important for strengthening the interests of Austrian employees.

The Staff Councils represent the interests of employees at company level. They negotiate operational agreements, take up concerns directly from the faculty and also provide initial advice for employees, for example on labour law issues. However, the focus of the information event was not on company-level employee representation, but on inter-company employee representation.

Johann Zöhling, member of the executive committee of the Union of Public Services ¹ (GÖD) and its head for collective bargaining agreements, presented the Union's work. He emphasized the conclusion of collective bargaining agreements as a central task of trade unions. In addition, there is support for staff councils (for example in concluding operational agreements), training, legal advice and representation for union members. If necessary, a trade union also organizes strikes. The discussion focused primarily on the issue of collective bargaining agreements. Although coverage by collective bargaining agreements in Austria reaches 98% (i.e. is much higher compared to other EU countries), the situation in the science sector is less rosy. The Collective Bargaining Agreement for universities only applies to universities under the Universities Act 2002, not to private universities and not to universities of applied sciences (FHs). In the meantime, there is at least one high-profile private university in Austria, the Central European University (CEU), which was forced out of Hungary by the right-wing nationalist Orbán government. However, there is also a group of university employees that is not covered by the Collective Bargaining Agreement: lecturers who are employed on the basis of a freelance service contract. There was also a debate about the salary structure of the B-Scheme of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which covers most academic staff. Among other things, GÖD representatives demand additional salary increases based on length of service. However, participants also emphasized that a reduction of the existing eight-year salary jumps based on length of service to a shorter period was absolutely desirable. There was also a lively debate on the classification of administrative staff to salary scales of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

The trade unions work closely with the Chamber of Labour ² (AK). The AK was represented at the event by Wolfgang Kozak, who also deals with university labour law. Chambers of Labours are an internationally rather unusual form of labour representation.  All employees in Austria, including those at Austrian universities (unless they are public servants), are subject to obligatory membership of the Chamber of Labour. Based on its research facilities, the Chamber incorporates employee perspectives into legislative proposals, supports staff councils with expertise and offers individual advice and legal protection for its members. As Wolfgang Kozak made clear, the Chamber of Labour has systematically expanded its expertise in the field of universities and science in recent years. The AK plenary assembly, whose composition will be determined in the upcoming AK elections, decides on the basic directions of AK work. Competing lists, which are often close to political parties, are running for election. Two candidates from the university sector who have been well placed on lists are Angelika Schmidt, former Chair of the WU Vienna Academic Staff Council, and Marion Polaschek, who is already a member of the AK plenary assembly and is an employee of the University of Vienna. Both emphasized during the event that the Chamber of Labour is very important for the representation of university-specific employee concerns.

In general, the importance of voter participation in the AK elections for strengthening employee representation was emphasized. This is particularly true in a context in which certain political forces are questioning the existing system of employee representation.

We are therefore once again calling on people to cast your vote in the upcoming Chamber of Labour elections. This opportunity will be available directly at WU from April 10, 2024, at the following times and locations:

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^{1 More information on the role of trade unions in Austria can be found here: https://www.wu.ac.at/en/the-university/organizational-structure/representative-groups/academic-staff-council/newsletter/br-info-6-2023-27112023/hintergrundinformationen-zu-gewerkschaften-und-kv-verhandlungen/}

^{2 More information on the role of the Chamber of Labour can be found here: https://www.wu.ac.at/en/universitaet/organisation/interessensvertretungen/betriebsrat-fuer-das-wissenschaftliche-personal/newsletter/br-info-7-2023/allgemeine-informationen-zur-arbeiterkammer-in-oesterreich/}

^22.03.2024

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