OeNB Chief Kocher Sees Innovative Solutions Needed in Autumn Wage Negotiations
"If there were any, we would have already found them," said OeNB Chief Kocher on Friday on the sidelines of a press conference. In view of the still high inflation and the bleak economic situation, he sees "innovative solutions" required from the social partners. It is important to keep an eye on competitiveness as well as the inflation difference to the Eurozone, according to Kocher.
OeNB Chief Kocher points to last agreement in metal industry before autumn wage negotiations
The specific design of the collective agreements is a matter for the negotiators, emphasized Kocher. However, it is clear "that this autumn and the coming year will be important for the inflation differential," especially since the level of agreements could also influence inflation. In Austria, inflation is currently significantly higher than in the Eurozone, where it has recently settled around the European Central Bank's (ECB) target value of 2 percent.
Kocher sees possibilities in regulations where, for example, wage and salary increases are made dependent on the company's success - as was already the case last year with some metal industry agreements. In such and similar variants, there are certainly still leeway, even if "the collective agreements are already more differentiated" than in the past.
He is concerned about the comparatively high inflation and thus the competitiveness in the service sector, such as tourism, which also depends on wages. "There are certain services provided domestically where competition is low, but many areas have a component that could lose competitiveness compared to other countries," noted Kocher.
Autumn wage negotiations start on September 22
The autumn wage negotiations traditionally start with the trend-setting metal industry collective agreement negotiations. This year, the start of negotiations is scheduled for September 22. Employee representatives insist on agreements that compensate for the rolling inflation of the past twelve months. Employer representatives, on the other hand, are calling for restrained agreements, citing, among other things, high wage agreements in recent years.
(APA/Red)
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