Fight against the lack of personnel: seasonal contingents in tourism increase!

Fight against the lack of personnel: seasonal contingents in tourism increase!

A crucial step for the Austrian tourism sector: On December 6, 2024, Federal Minister Martin Kocher presented a regulation on the extension of the seasonal contingents to enable additional workers in the tourism federal states. The increase in the overall quota to 4,985 places comes to the tense high season just in time, since tourism is dependent on sufficient staff. WB General Secretary Kurt Egger emphasized that despite this measure, long-term reforms are necessary to cover the needs in the labor market, in particular by incentives for top performers and bureaucratic reliefs, the APA OTS .

increase in the contingent in response to a shortage of labor

The shortage of skilled workers in Austria is an urgent problem that affects the tourism sector in particular. The seasonal contingent regulation on May 26, 2023 was discussed in advance, where Kocher and State Secretary for Tourism, Kraus-Winkler, addressed the increasing demand for personnel and for the first time pointed out the continuous increases of the contingent. These reactions are necessary in order to cover the acute need of over 7,000 seasonal workstations in the areas of tourism and agriculture, since the majority of the additional places are eliminated in the tourism sector, the bmaw .

By increasing the seasonal contingents, companies can react better to the high season. The new positions are distributed via various federal states, with most of the additional positions in federal states with strong tourist rush. These measures not only provide for relaxation on the job market, but also ensure the quality of service that guests expect in restaurants and accommodation companies.