COVID-19, Staffing levels, Early Childhood Education and Care, Austria
Union hands in petition on pay and conditions of childcare workers
The public services trade union, younion, collected 15000 signatures in a petition that it handed in to the parliament of the region of Lower Austria on 10 October. The petition calls for action to deal with the pay and working conditions of the 3000 childcare workers in the region. The union wants to see improvements to education and training in the sector as well as the development of a proper career structure. It is also calling for pay to be commensurate with the responsibilities and demands of the job. The union is expecting to be able to negotiate soon, although there is no offer on this
Minimum wage for childcare workers up by 3%
Private childcare workers saw a 3% increase in the sector minimum wage from 1 January. The increase was negotiated by the vida and GPA-djp service trade unions with the Federal Arbitration Office. The increase takes the lowest wage level above EUR 1500 for the first time, reaching EUR 1514. There is also a provision to ensure that special payments continue to be fully paid in cases of long-term sickness or accidents at work. The unions are pleased that this is a good deal for the 10000 workers in the sector, the vast majority of whom are women.
Childcare workers get 3% pay increase
Around 10000 childcare workers in private institutions will see their pay increase by at least 3% this month as new regulations introduced by the labour ministry are implemented. Those on lower pay rates will get a 3.3% increase with a minimum of EUR 50. The pay rises are welcomed by the vida and GPA-djp trade unions that see these as a significant improvement for the women-dominated sector and as a contribution to tackle pay inequality. There will also be new rules to allow appropriate experience in similar work, including time worked in other countries, to be taken into account in career
Better pay and working time in private health and care
Services unions vida and GPA-djp are pleased with the pay and working time package they have negotiated in the private health and care sector that covers 100000 workers. After five bargaining rounds, the employers agreed to a 3.2% pay increase and a series of measures on working time. These include an extra day of holiday after two years' service, additional payments for covering shifts, part-time work for older workers, recognising that time taken to change clothes at work is working time, new rules on split shifts and more certainty with planning rotas. There will also be an extra EUR 100 a
Unions call workplace meetings as employer rejects bargaining demands
The vida and GPA-djp private service unions have called for workplace meetings to take place in all Red Cross establishments on 29 March. This is a reaction to the employers' decision to call off the next bargaining round on 22 March and delay negotiations to mid-April. The employer has so far rejected the main demands from the union for unified, national collective provisions to ensure a five-day week for all, better shift arrangements, additional payments for night and Sunday work and more holidays. The unions are also concerned that in some regions employees don't get paid breaks or
More pay, holidays and allowances for emergency workers
The vida and GPA-djp private service trade unions have negotiated a new agreement covering around 600 medical and health emergency staff. Workers in the Vienna region will get a 3.2% increase backdated to 1 February while increases will be set according to the appropriate arrangements in other regions and backdated to 1 January. After five years' service all workers will get an additional day of paid holidays. There is also an increase in the cleaning allowance and a child allowance of at least EUR 15 for each child from 2020.
Childcare assistants to get 3% pay increase
The vida services union has negotiated a 3% pay increase that will cover around 5000 childcare assistants working in private institutions and take the minimum wage in the sector to EUR 1611 a month. Pay for this group of workers is regulated by the ministry of social affairs. There will also be a 3% increase on additional payments and a new pay level for workers with 31 years of service or more.
Pay and hours deal in private health and social care
The vida and GPA-djp services unions have negotiated a pay and hours deal for 125000 workers in the private health and social care sector. Pay will increase by 2.7% this year backdated to 1 February and then by inflation plus 0.6% from 1 January 2021. The unions had been demanding a 35-hour week for all workers in the sector and this remains a target. The new agreement, however, does provide for a 37-hour week from 1 January 2022. With weekly pay staying the same for full-time workers this will mean a higher hourly rate and part-time workers will be compensated with an additional increase of 2
Unions call for national rules for childcare
The vida and GPA-djp private services unions have called on the government to take a national approach to regulations on childcare as institutions try to get to grips with rules on safety that vary across the country. The unions are concerned that proper measures are in place to protect workers and children but they have had reports of regional authorities applying different rules on face masks as well as recommending different staff:children ratios. In the meantime, the two unions are also pushing for a new collective agreement covering around 15000 health and care staff at the non-profit
Union calls private health bargaining to resume
The vida trade union has criticised employers in private health institutions for unilaterally postponing negotiations until September. The union argues that this leaves workers paying the price and that rather than COVID-19 being used as an excuse for suspending negotiations it should be a good reason for a quick settlement to compensate for inflation and with an increased allowance for dangerous work. There have been actions around the country on the issue and the union will be looking for workers to put more pressure on employers to resume negotiations.
Unions make progress with "health offensive" campaign
Public and private sector health unions (younion, GÖD, vida and GPA-djp) have joined with the chamber of labour and chamber of doctors in a campaign - "health offensive". The aim is to achieve major change across the health and long-term care sectors and tackle some of the long-standing issues of understaffing and overwork that have been exposed by the impact of COVID-19. The unions have managed to establish a structured dialogue with the health ministry to address seven key issues - staffing, working conditions, training, career development, investment and ensuring service provision.
€34 million boost for health and care workers' pay and conditions
After negotiations dating back to November 2018 the public and private sector health and care unions (younion, GÖD, GPA-djp and vida) have secured a €34 million package of improvements to the pay and conditions of workers in the Upper Austria region. As of 1 February 2021 qualified nurses, midwives and clinical social workers will get pay rises ranging from €97 to €194 a month. Improvements to other conditions include a second night shift in care homes with more than 60 beds, additional support staff and the right to full-time work for part-time staff. The measures will be implemented directly
Union calls for public-sector wide pay rise
In anticipation of annual pay negotiations, the GÖD public service union has written to the government calling for sustained, real increases in pay and allowances for all public sector workers. The union argues that public employees have faced increasingly difficult working conditions as they have responded to the pandemic and its knock-on effects on employment and the economy by maintaining quality public services. The union points out the importance of public services to support Austria as a successful international economy and that a pay rise for the public sector would make an important