Two years ago, the social partners in the Austrian metalworking industry needed eight meetings and a day of strike action to reach a collective agreement for the sector. This year, however, the negotiations were concluded in just a few hours on 22 September.
A crisis agreement
This change of pace can be explained by the crisis currently affecting the Austrian economy, which is experiencing its longest economic recession in around 80 years, with GDP falling for three consecutive years (-1.0% in 2023, -1.2% in 2024 and -0.3% in 2025).
As a Berlin correspondent for the French and Swiss press since the late 1990s, I cover a wide range of economic, political and social issues, with a particular focus on the German business and labour market. My areas of interest include co-determination, digitalisation, demographics and ESG/DEI policies.