Debate about social welfare

Welfare system alarm: experts with reform package

A large family from Wels in Upper Austria: happy, but financially stretched to the limit(Bild: privat, Krone KREATIV)

Families who work full-time often earn less than those who don't - the case of a large family from Upper Austria recently caused a stir. Now the parents have turned to the "Krone" newspaper. Meanwhile, experts are presenting a reform package.

"We can just about make ends meet." Despite both parents working full-time. Seven children, six of whom are of school age, cost an enormous amount. The family from Wels in Upper Austria came to the attention of the public through a documentary on Servus TV. The "Krone" also reported on the remarkable family.

The occasion was the debate about social welfare, triggered by the case of a Syrian family with seven children in Vienna who receive 4600 euros net per month. Without any work. A proposal by SPÖ leader Andreas Babler would have offered 2200 euros more, which the ÖVP gleefully exploited.

"We are concerned about justice"
The family from Wels receives between 4000 and 4500 euros net income. Various benefits for people without income or family allowances are not included in the comparison. Otherwise the difference would be even greater.

After the report on ServusTV and in the "Krone", there were strong reactions on the Internet. Not always positive ones for the family. "We also want to set the record straight," say the parents, who both work at WIFI. "It's not about foreign families getting more here, but we generally criticize an imbalance. That despite working full-time, you sometimes get less than others who receive social welfare."

Both parents also work with many people with a migration background. "That's another reason why we oppose a division between nationals and foreigners."

Like the ÖVP, the couple refer to the Danish model. Here, you have to have paid into the system for several years in order to receive the full benefits. Work should be worthwhile, a much-used slogan.

Concerns about "Greek conditions"
This is also the view of economists Carmen Treml and Denes Kucsera from Agenda Austria. The think tank has compiled a dossier for a reform of the social system. "Plan A" was the title. The economists are alarmed and are pushing for structural and far-reaching reforms. More incentives to work are needed. "In 2023, social spending amounted to around 145 billion euros." The OECD sees "Greek conditions approaching Austria if we do not take timely countermeasures in terms of expenditure".

Important point: putting the brakes on subsidies. Easy to implement. Another issue: pensions. The system is tilting. There is an urgent need to raise the retirement age and adjust it in line with increasing life expectancy. And - as is common practice in other countries - more private and occupational pension provision. Denmark and the Netherlands are a hundred times ahead of us here.

Further demands: Standardize social benefits and only for those in need. Stricter rules for those unwilling to work (e.g. benefits in kind instead of cash). And: introduction of care insurance. The next government is likely to have a lot to do.