Health care reform: Austria to give €2,000 bonus to nursing staff
As part of a reform of the Austrian health sector, around 150,000 workers will benefit from a care bonus.
When the Austrian government announced a broad health sector reform, with measures to make the nursing profession more attractive, one of the points was a one-off bonus payment, as The Local reported.
The Ministry of Social Affairs has released more detailed information, Austrian media reported. Some 150,000 employees in the care sector will receive a bonus of €2,000 gross (for those working full-time).
In addition, Austrian provinces are free to add cash to that amount, and Lower Austria will pay an additional tax-free bonus of €500 to more than 23,000 nursing and care workers, broadcaster ORF reported.
READ ALSO: How Austria is making it easier for non-EU workers to get residence permits
"We want to say thank you to the employees for all they have done," said governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) in a press conference on Monday.
The payment should come as a salary in December, according to Wiener Zeitung. The federal budget has earmarked €570 million for the bonus, a large part of the €1 billion reform package announced in May.
Other measures for the health sector
For the next two years, there are several measures planned by the Health Ministry to make the profession more attractive. Austria suffers from a skilled staff shortage in many sectors, including health and care.
“We have been calling for better conditions and better pay for years. Thousands of beds are now empty because we don’t have enough staff." Beatrix Eiletz, head of the works council of Styrian Volkshilfe, told the daily Der Standard before the government relief announcement.
READ ALSO: More pay and longer holidays: How Austria hopes to attract 75,000 new nurses
It is not uncommon that nurses will quit their jobs and move to entirely different professions, thereby increasing the gap, the report added.
When the government announced its 2023 budget, the Social Affairs and Health Ministry was set to receive an extra €1 billion.
Minister Johannes Rauch defined three priorities for the coming year: the fight against poverty, care and health promotion.
Rauch also specified that the money would be used “where it is currently most urgent”. He mentioned the combat of poverty, cushioning the consequences of the pandemic and counteracting the shortage of nursing staff.
The problem is not new in Austria – but the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated it.
Bonus payment and cost of living measures
The care professionals are not the only ones getting bonus payments in Austria this year.
In June, a €6 billion package to fight the rising cost of living impact on residents was announced.
READ ALSO: What is the new cost of living ‘credit’ for self-employed people in Austria?
As The Local has reported, it involved increasing family allowances, cutting taxes and one-off welfare payouts, including the €500 Klimabonus that (almost) every single person living in the Alpine country was entitled to.
The government has also sent out energy vouchers and imposed a price cap on electricity.
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When the Austrian government announced a broad health sector reform, with measures to make the nursing profession more attractive, one of the points was a one-off bonus payment, as The Local reported.
The Ministry of Social Affairs has released more detailed information, Austrian media reported. Some 150,000 employees in the care sector will receive a bonus of €2,000 gross (for those working full-time).
In addition, Austrian provinces are free to add cash to that amount, and Lower Austria will pay an additional tax-free bonus of €500 to more than 23,000 nursing and care workers, broadcaster ORF reported.
READ ALSO: How Austria is making it easier for non-EU workers to get residence permits
"We want to say thank you to the employees for all they have done," said governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) in a press conference on Monday.
The payment should come as a salary in December, according to Wiener Zeitung. The federal budget has earmarked €570 million for the bonus, a large part of the €1 billion reform package announced in May.
Other measures for the health sector
For the next two years, there are several measures planned by the Health Ministry to make the profession more attractive. Austria suffers from a skilled staff shortage in many sectors, including health and care.
“We have been calling for better conditions and better pay for years. Thousands of beds are now empty because we don’t have enough staff." Beatrix Eiletz, head of the works council of Styrian Volkshilfe, told the daily Der Standard before the government relief announcement.
READ ALSO: More pay and longer holidays: How Austria hopes to attract 75,000 new nurses
It is not uncommon that nurses will quit their jobs and move to entirely different professions, thereby increasing the gap, the report added.
When the government announced its 2023 budget, the Social Affairs and Health Ministry was set to receive an extra €1 billion.
Minister Johannes Rauch defined three priorities for the coming year: the fight against poverty, care and health promotion.
Rauch also specified that the money would be used “where it is currently most urgent”. He mentioned the combat of poverty, cushioning the consequences of the pandemic and counteracting the shortage of nursing staff.
The problem is not new in Austria – but the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated it.
Bonus payment and cost of living measures
The care professionals are not the only ones getting bonus payments in Austria this year.
In June, a €6 billion package to fight the rising cost of living impact on residents was announced.
READ ALSO: What is the new cost of living ‘credit’ for self-employed people in Austria?
As The Local has reported, it involved increasing family allowances, cutting taxes and one-off welfare payouts, including the €500 Klimabonus that (almost) every single person living in the Alpine country was entitled to.
The government has also sent out energy vouchers and imposed a price cap on electricity.
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