Today in Austria: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday
Austria's domestic labour market faces major problems, rising rents are hitting students hard and more news from Austria on Wednesday.
Domestic labour market faces major problems
The labour market in Austria faces long-term challenges due to a demographic imbalance: there are relatively more elderly individuals and fewer young people, Kurier reported.
The population, especially among those over 65, is growing, while the working-age population is stagnating. This demographic trend poses long-term challenges for the labour market. At the same time, the labour force participation of older people in Austria remains below the EU average, and the country has the second highest rate of part-time work in the EU. More than half of women over the age of 35 work part-time, according to Statistics Austria.
Another contributing factor to the challenges is that many job vacancies remain unfilled. This is partly due to demographic changes and the mismatch between job opportunities and available workers.
Rising rents are hitting students hard
Rising rents are hitting students hard in Austria and as a result, some need to move back to their parents, reported Der Standard.
Research conducted by the Austrian Students' Union (ÖH) and the Vienna Chamber of Labour (AK) reveals that, on average, students spend 43 percent of their income on housing expenses. This amount is more than double that of the rest of the population, who spend an average of 21 percent of their monthly budget on housing.
"We have seen that many students have had to move or look for a roommate due to inflation," says Dora Jandl, consultant for higher education policy at the Vienna Chamber of Labour.
To improve the situation for the students, AK and ÖH require the reintroduction of the federal student dormitory funding, which ended in 2010. This should make it possible to offer more affordable dormitories. They would also like to see rent controls, an move for more subsidised housing and an end to fixed-term leases.
What's open in Austria over Easter weekend?
If you are in Austria over Easter it's important to know what's open and what's closed over the long weekend. From supermarkets to transport here's a run through.
Sellner given entry ban from Germany
Radical Austrian nationalist Martin Sellner has been banned from entering Germany
It emerged on Tuesday, days after he was deported from Switzerland. Martin Sellner, a leader of Austria's white pride Identitarian Movement, posted a video of himself on X, formerly Twitter, reading out a letter he said was from the city of Potsdam.
A spokeswoman for the city authorities confirmed to AFP that an EU citizen had been served with a "ban on their freedom of movement in Germany". The person can no longer enter or stay in Germany "with immediate effect" and could be stopped by police or deported if they try to enter the country, the spokeswoman said, declining to name the individual for privacy reasons.
"We have to show that the state is not powerless and will use its legitimate means," Mike Schubert, the mayor of Potsdam, said in a statement.
READ ALSO: Who is Austria's far right figure head banned across Europe?
Austria dismisses claims against Bayer over glyphosate (AFP)
Vienna prosecutors have dismissed claims by an NGO grouping alleging that chemicals firm Bayer withheld data showing health risks from exposure to its herbicide glyphosate, they said Tuesday. The European Commission in November said it would allow the use of the controversial herbicide glyphosate for another 10 years, breaking a stalemate between EU states divided over its safety.
Several NGOs, including Global 2000, lodged a claim in Vienna in September last year against Bayer over the weedkiller. Environmental activists have long cited scientific evidence that glyphosate may cause cancer, poison aquatic life and be fatal to key pollinators like bees, which Bayer and some experts dispute. "All complaints concerning glyphosate have been checked, and there are no more probes ongoing. All have been dismissed or closed," a spokeswoman for the Vienna prosecutor's office told AFP.
Vienna prosecutors opened an inquiry in 2019 after NGOs filed suits alleging the herbicide's dangers. As part of that inquiry, the Global 2000 association said it had given prosecutors new documents purportedly showing that Bayer omitted research results indicating risks to the nervous system, especially for pregnant women and children.
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Domestic labour market faces major problems
The labour market in Austria faces long-term challenges due to a demographic imbalance: there are relatively more elderly individuals and fewer young people, Kurier reported.
The population, especially among those over 65, is growing, while the working-age population is stagnating. This demographic trend poses long-term challenges for the labour market. At the same time, the labour force participation of older people in Austria remains below the EU average, and the country has the second highest rate of part-time work in the EU. More than half of women over the age of 35 work part-time, according to Statistics Austria.
Another contributing factor to the challenges is that many job vacancies remain unfilled. This is partly due to demographic changes and the mismatch between job opportunities and available workers.
Rising rents are hitting students hard
Rising rents are hitting students hard in Austria and as a result, some need to move back to their parents, reported Der Standard.
Research conducted by the Austrian Students' Union (ÖH) and the Vienna Chamber of Labour (AK) reveals that, on average, students spend 43 percent of their income on housing expenses. This amount is more than double that of the rest of the population, who spend an average of 21 percent of their monthly budget on housing.
"We have seen that many students have had to move or look for a roommate due to inflation," says Dora Jandl, consultant for higher education policy at the Vienna Chamber of Labour.
To improve the situation for the students, AK and ÖH require the reintroduction of the federal student dormitory funding, which ended in 2010. This should make it possible to offer more affordable dormitories. They would also like to see rent controls, an move for more subsidised housing and an end to fixed-term leases.
What's open in Austria over Easter weekend?
If you are in Austria over Easter it's important to know what's open and what's closed over the long weekend. From supermarkets to transport here's a run through.
Sellner given entry ban from Germany
Radical Austrian nationalist Martin Sellner has been banned from entering Germany
It emerged on Tuesday, days after he was deported from Switzerland. Martin Sellner, a leader of Austria's white pride Identitarian Movement, posted a video of himself on X, formerly Twitter, reading out a letter he said was from the city of Potsdam.
A spokeswoman for the city authorities confirmed to AFP that an EU citizen had been served with a "ban on their freedom of movement in Germany". The person can no longer enter or stay in Germany "with immediate effect" and could be stopped by police or deported if they try to enter the country, the spokeswoman said, declining to name the individual for privacy reasons.
"We have to show that the state is not powerless and will use its legitimate means," Mike Schubert, the mayor of Potsdam, said in a statement.
READ ALSO: Who is Austria's far right figure head banned across Europe?
Austria dismisses claims against Bayer over glyphosate (AFP)
Vienna prosecutors have dismissed claims by an NGO grouping alleging that chemicals firm Bayer withheld data showing health risks from exposure to its herbicide glyphosate, they said Tuesday. The European Commission in November said it would allow the use of the controversial herbicide glyphosate for another 10 years, breaking a stalemate between EU states divided over its safety.
Several NGOs, including Global 2000, lodged a claim in Vienna in September last year against Bayer over the weedkiller. Environmental activists have long cited scientific evidence that glyphosate may cause cancer, poison aquatic life and be fatal to key pollinators like bees, which Bayer and some experts dispute. "All complaints concerning glyphosate have been checked, and there are no more probes ongoing. All have been dismissed or closed," a spokeswoman for the Vienna prosecutor's office told AFP.
Vienna prosecutors opened an inquiry in 2019 after NGOs filed suits alleging the herbicide's dangers. As part of that inquiry, the Global 2000 association said it had given prosecutors new documents purportedly showing that Bayer omitted research results indicating risks to the nervous system, especially for pregnant women and children.
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