Service as usual

Working at Christmas: They keep the country running

Annelies Scherl works from 6 am to 6 pm on December 24th. Tobias Mitterbauer's shift lasts from 7 pm to 7 am.(Bild: ÖBB/Krone KREATIV)

While others celebrate Christmas Eve with their families, they have to work as usual. The "Krone" brings two "Christmas heroes" in front of the curtain who work for ÖBB in Tyrol on December 24th.

Doctors, nurses, police officers, firefighters, paramedics and many others ensure that the entire infrastructure in the country continues to function over the Christmas holidays. On behalf of them all, the "Krone" presents an employee of ÖBB in Tyrol.

Both are on duty on Christmas Eve to ensure that "everything is on track".

We plan our celebrations depending on the shift. We either celebrate after the shift in the evening or the next day.

Annelies Scherl

"Special atmosphere"
"I'm on duty from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve," says Annelies Scherl, who works as a dispatcher at the Innsbruck operations control center. From Tyrol, she is also responsible for the Rhine Valley in neighboring Ländle. "Working on public holidays has a special atmosphere. It's quieter than on normal days and many colleagues and passengers are in a festive mood," says Scherl, who is not working on December 24th for the first time.

"My family and I have already got used to it. We plan our celebrations depending on the shift. We either celebrate after the shift in the evening or the next day," she says. To create a festive atmosphere despite being on duty, "we have a small Christmas tree in the office. And we give each other little presents or cookies".

It is likely to be a quiet shift. Maintenance work is unlikely on December 24.

Tobias Mitterbauer

"So that others can celebrate better with their families"
For colleague Tobias Mitterbauer, who works at the central energy control center in Innsbruck, the shift starts at 7 p.m. on 24 December and lasts until 7 a.m. on Christmas Day. "It will probably be fairly quiet. Maintenance work is not expected," he says.

He splits up the Christmas celebrations. "I go skiing with one part of the family before the afternoon nap and celebrate with the other part on December 25th in the evening." He and his colleagues have a tradition of cooking their own food on the night shift. "We realized that there is no delivery service in Innsbruck on the 24th."

The reason why Annelies and Tobias are on duty on Christmas Eve? "So that others can celebrate better with their families."