Dissatisfaction Is Rising

Shoddy work as a small act of “revenge” against the state

Trades in particular are often carried out as shoddy jobs(Bild: Andreas Tröster)

In Austria, shoddy work is—and remains—a minor offense. But a recent survey even provided an “aha” moment for Friedrich Schneider, the “shadow economy professor” from Linz: Austrians claim that cutting corners is acceptable because the services provided by the government no longer match the taxes they pay. It’s essentially the “revenge” of the little guy against the state.

“Next year, I’ll take a closer look at the reasons for this dissatisfaction,” announced Friedrich Schneider, professor emeritus at Kepler University, during the presentation of the latest Market study, which surveyed more than 2,000 Austrians. This, he explained, was a “striking” and “surprising” finding of the survey. Over the past nine years, satisfaction with government services—essentially in return for taxes paid—has dropped from 67 to 43 percent. And 39 percent of those surveyed see a connection between dissatisfaction and shoddy work.

Paying an average of 500 euros
Nearly two-thirds of Austrians also believe that “without unlicensed workers, many things would no longer be affordable,” and one in four used the services of “unregistered workers” last year. Most often, these were traditional services such as car repairs, electrical or plumbing work, haircuts, beauty treatments, and house and yard work. “On average, 500 euros were paid. But the range here is very wide,” says Schneider.

It’s no surprise that 17 percent of 16- to 29-year-olds engage in moonlighting: they’re young, strong, have time on their hands, and need the money.

Friedrich Schneider, emer. JKU-Professor

Hourly wages also rose
He sees the high level of acceptance of undeclared work as the biggest obstacle to combating it. Only 4 percent of those surveyed believed that someone doing undeclared work should be reported, and even fewer would actually do so themselves. The rising cost of living is one of the drivers of the shadow economy. At the same time, the average hourly wage for those working off the books has risen from 17 to 28 euros over the past seven years. Here, too, there are outliers—both higher and lower—depending on the service provided.

Reducing working hours, but doing more shoddy work
It’s also interesting to note that there’s a connection between shorter working hours—28 percent of workers want to work fewer official hours—and moonlighting. That’s because 24 percent of respondents said they would use the extra free time to moonlight. “The notion that young people are lazy is simply not true,” says Schneider, who hopes the economy will pick up again soon and employment will rise. “Anyone who has the opportunity to earn good money doing overtime at their regular job is probably less likely to tile their neighbor’s bathroom on a Friday night while their friends are out,” says the “shadow economy professor.”