Shortly after taking office

8,000 Euro Pay Raise for WKÖ Division Head

Eva Landrichtinger has been managing director of the Banking Division since fall 2025.(Bild: BMAW/Holey)

The Austrian Chamber of Commerce is facing criticism from the Court of Auditors over lavish salaries. One raise in particular stands out: According to *Die Presse*, Eva Landrichtinger, head of the banking division, received a gross raise of 8,000 euros just one month after her appointment—citing “exceptional performance.” Originally, this was supposed to happen automatically, but as is well known, the 4.2 percent across-the-board pay raise for all employees did not materialize.

After her time in politics, 33-year-old Eva Landrichtinger moved to the Chamber of Commerce. There, she took over as managing director of the Federal Banking Division in November 2025. This is not her first top position in a career environment dominated by the conservative party. Previously, she served as chief of staff and secretary-general at the ÖVP-led Ministry of Labor and Economy.

After One Month of “Exceptionally Good Performance”
Just one month after being appointed managing director, she received a pay raise, according to “Die Presse”—a fact that also caught the attention of the Court of Auditors: “In early December 2025 —and thus about a month after starting her employment—the individual received an extraordinary pay increase because, during salary negotiations, she had been verbally promised a gross annual salary of around 160,000 euros (...).” In the end, the gross annual salary came to 163,000 euros, which amounts to about 11,650 euros per month. 

Salaries at the Chamber of Commerce have come under criticism.(Bild: APA/ROLAND SCHLAGER)

The Chamber justified this by citing “exceptionally good performance,” which it claimed justified an extraordinary pay grade increase. However, the Court of Auditors criticizes that there is no documentation to show to what extent such performance actually occurred.

Circumvention of the 4.2 Percent Pay Cut
The pay raise to over 160,000 euros was actually supposed to happen without much fanfare. Originally, the Chamber of Commerce had planned to raise the salaries of all employees—including the managing directors—by 4.2 percent. However, following a massive wave of criticism, the Chamber backtracked, and so the agreed-upon amount of 160,000 euros gross per year did not come about without some maneuvering. The Chamber still granted Landrichtinger the raise—albeit via a small detour, which actually resulted in an increase of more than 4.2 percent.

Supervisory Board Position Overlooked
And the Court of Auditors has another criticism: Landrichtinger stated that she did not hold any supervisory board positions. In fact, however, she chairs the board of Schloss Schönbrunn Kultur- und Betriebsgesellschaft. This is not in itself a contradiction, but the Court of Auditors criticizes the fact that it was not disclosed transparently; that only happened later.

Incidentally, compared to her previous position as secretary general at the Ministry of Economic Affairs, there is no noticeable jump in salary—quite the opposite. In fact, the current gross annual salary there is over 200,000 euros.