After a complaint was filed against the head of the Chamber of Commerce over previous pension fund payments for Secretary General Karlheinz Kopf, WKÖ President Harald Mahrer is relaxed and again rejects the allegations of a Viennese law firm. The Chamber of Commerce is taking things calmly.
“In the case of luxury pensions – there are none,” Mahrer said on the sidelines of a press conference on Tuesday. The system was abolished. According to Mahrer, Kopf’s contract was mainly about a technical problem in the execution.
Contract “legally checked, found to be in order”
When Kopf joined in 2018, the contract was also legally checked and found to be correct. In 2021, legal information was also obtained from the State Department and amended legal advice was received. As a result, the agreement was terminated and a reversal with the pension fund was initiated. “The House has always adhered to the latest advice from legal experts – including outside advice – and has implemented it accordingly,” Mahrer said.
Since Kopf, as Secretary General of the WKÖ, is considered a senior employee, he has a special contract that is not subject to the Labor Constitution or the WKÖ service regulations. This allows for a supplementary agreement on pensions.
supplementary pensions? “just untrue”
Mahrer also rejected allegations that WKÖ employees continued to receive supplementary pensions, contrary to a decision made in 2012. That’s “simply not true,” says Mahrer. There are employees who worked in another part of the WKÖ before 2012 and brought these requirements to the WKÖ, as it were. Their claim is fully justified and “legally correct”.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
