National Council discusses ÖH compulsory membership: FPÖ demands freedom!

National Council discusses ÖH compulsory membership: FPÖ demands freedom!

Wien, Österreich - The National Council ended today, on April 25, 2025, the plenary week with a debate about the application of the FPÖ to abolish compulsory membership at the Austrian University (ÖH). According to information from OTS , the FPÖ demands that you can decide whether you pay the ÖH contribution and become a member want. This demand met with criticism from other political groups that interpret the application as a campaign strategy before the upcoming ÖH elections.

The application was assigned to the scientific committee for preliminary advice after the first reading, but there was no vote. At the meeting, the MPs also unanimously took note of the activity report of the Court of Auditors 2024 and a report on income development in Austria. In this context, the Court of Auditors Margit Kraker called for a strict budget consolidation course, since the state spent too much 8 billion euros last year.

contradictory views about the ÖH

The FPÖ justifies its application by the fact that in its opinion, the ÖH does not fulfill its core tasks. FPÖ MP Manuel Litzke expressed specific accusations against the ÖH and at the same time campaigned for the alleged free students (RFS) with regard to the ÖH elections. The Greens and the SPÖ, on the other hand, defend the ÖH and emphasize their importance for student policy.

The ÖH is considered the legal representation of the students at the Austrian universities, universities of applied sciences, universities of teacher and private universities. According to Austria.at , membership is mandatory for all ordinary and extraordinary students, whereby the current membership fee is 22.70 euros per semester. Part of the contribution flows into accident and liability insurance and the federal representation of the ÖH.

Development of the income situation

Further decisions by the National Council included a majority for a application for deadline, which secured advice on an amendment to the Animal Welfare Act in the next meeting on May 13th. In addition, the report on income development covered that in 2023 there were around 4.7 million people in dependent employment, which corresponds to an increase of 10 percent compared to ten years ago. 51 percent of women worked part -time all year round, while it was only 12 percent for men.

The middle gross annual income was 35,300 euros in 2023, whereas part -time employees earn an average of 25,400 euros. The income disadvantage of women is also evident in the pension: pensioners receive an average of 30,300 euros, while pensioners only receive 18,800 euros.

The debate about part -time work remains relevant in view of the majority of part -time employees who work part -time due to care tasks. There is a growing concern about atypical employment of 700,000 employees: inside in Austria.

The next meeting promises to tackle exciting discussions on the future of education, the university representative and the income situation in Austria. In the meantime, interested parties can join the FPÖ using an online form that can be found here (https://www.fpoe-wien.at/Member-werden/anvalenteformular/).