Ollersdorf mayor warns October salaries could be delayed

Ollersdorf Mayor Bernd Strobl has warned that municipal employees’ October salaries could be delayed, reopening a dispute with the Burgenland government and the SPÖ, ORF Burgenland reports.

The salaries, which include pay for early childhood educators and municipal workers, total about 40,000 euros, plus payroll-related costs. They are due on the 15th of each month under Section 65 of Burgenland’s Municipal Employees Act.

The SPÖ accused Strobl, an ÖVP member, of failing to pay staff on time. He rejected the accusation, saying money from the state was insufficient and arriving late. In a letter to municipal employees, he said there could be delays with the October payments.

The letter prompted criticism from SPÖ parliamentary group leader Roland Fürst, who described it as a partisan political performance. SPÖ state executives Friedrich Radlspäck and Kevin Friedl called for Strobl to resign as mayor. They also pointed to financial advice offered by state experts, which they said Strobl had not accepted.

Strobl said large deductions from municipalities’ revenue shares and late grant payments had left many local authorities short of cash, not just Ollersdorf, a municipality in Güssing district. Ollersdorf’s municipal employees also faced salary delays in January. Strobl said at the time he had paid the wages himself.