The issue of part-time or full-time preoccupied the National Council on Wednesday. After the recent excitement over a proposal by Labor Minister Martin Kocher (ÖVP) to cut part-time jobs and social benefits, this time the response was defensive. The focus was on incentives and warnings about the part-time trap.
The subject had been requested by the NEOS, whose club president Beate Meinl-Reisinger rejected part-time work penalties – mainly because many could not opt for the reduction of working hours. Instead, she advocated a tax bonus of 100 euros per month for full-time employees.
Kocher continues to try to make amends
That didn’t really convince Kocher. He spoke of costs of four billion euros that would mean the implementation of the proposal. He tried to make it clear that his proposal was not intended for those who had no choice but to work part-time – for example, because of care obligations or because they were not offered a full-time job.
SPÖ threatens resistance, ÖVP thinks about pensions
Especially with that last point, more needs to be done so that anyone who wants to can switch from part-time to full-time, demanded SPÖ club president Pamela Rendi-Wagner. Kocher’s suggestion was “without morals” if the non-full-time workers were already saddled with lower pensions because of the “part-time trap”. If he wants to carry this through, there will be a storm that the previous resistance was a fan of.
Green social spokesman Markus Koza pointed out that the world of work and access to the subject of leisure had changed whether you wanted it to or not. In the part-time debate, he pointed out that women do two-thirds of unpaid domestic work. ÖVP club boss August Wöginger said workers should be made aware of the consequences of part-time work – namely lower pensions.
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.
