Pending quota rules stall Tirol winter staffing plans

Unresolved rules on Austria’s quota for foreign seasonal workers are holding up staffing plans for the coming winter season in Tirol, ORF reports. The tourism sector is urging the government to issue the regulation quickly.

The regulation sets how many workers from other EU countries may work temporarily in Austria as seasonal staff. The national quota was used to 63.4 percent by July this year, below the 75 percent threshold for automatic renewal, so the regulation must be issued again.

Alois Rainer, head of the gastronomy trade association at the Austrian Economic Chamber and a restaurateur in the Zillertal, said the regulation should have been ready two weeks ago. Employers first need to recruit staff, and administrative procedures can take a long time. In the worst case, workers may not arrive until January, although the season peaks around December 20, he said. Tirol’s tourism councillor, Mario Gerber of the ÖVP, has also called for a quick decision to give businesses planning certainty.

About two-thirds of tourism workers in Tirol do not have Austrian citizenship, according to the Tirol Public Employment Service. Its deputy head, Johannes Schranz, said the wait for the quota regulation was also a significant issue for the service, adding that he understood businesses’ need for clarity and security.

Figures from the Ministry of Social Affairs show Tirol used an average of 69.4 percent of its tourism quota over the year, rising to 94.6 percent at the winter peak.

The ministry said the regulation was still being coordinated. The government programme provides for an annual base quota of 5,500 seasonal workers and a separate Western Balkans quota of 2,500. About 2,300 regular seasonal workers are not included in these quotas. The ministry told ORF it expects to decide on the regulation by next week at the latest.