PAYROLL REGULATIONS: AUSTRIA

Minimum wage

Undertakings that post or hire out workers to Austria are obligated to pay at least the minimum wage applicable in Austria.

The minimum wage level in the specific case is not defined by law in Austria but usually derives from the collective agreement applicable to the sector and type of work.

Paying wages below the minimum level entails heavy fines in Austria. Apart from any such fines, employees can bring court action to claim the difference.

Working time

Normal daily working time (i.e. excluding overtime) is eight hours; normal weekly working time (i.e. excluding overtime) is 40 hours.

The maximum of overtime allowed per week is 20 hours. Daily working time including overtime must not exceed 12 hours.

If all options have been exhausted, on request by the employer and based on a demonstrated urgent need, the competent Labour Inspectorate can approve an additional extension of working time.

Minimum number of days/hours off:

• Employees are to be granted an uninterrupted minimum rest period of eleven hours after their daily working time.
• A reduction of the rest period to a minimum of eight consecutive hours can be stipulated by collective agreement, provided that another rest period within the following ten calendar days is extended commensurately.
• During every calendar week employees are entitled to an uninterrupted rest period of 36 hours, which must include the Sunday. Weekend rest has to begin by 1 pm on Saturday at the latest.
• On public holidays employees are entitled to an uninterrupted rest period of at least 24 hours. For work performed on a public holiday, employees are entitled to remuneration for the hours worked, in addition to regular remuneration.

Breaks

• Where daily working time amounts to more than six hours, work must be interrupted for a break of at least 30 minutes.
• In the case of a fully continuous working time schedule, the rest period must be replaced by several short breaks of appropriate duration

Leave

• For every working year, employees are entitled to five calendar weeks of paid annual leave (i.e. 30 working days for a six-day working week and 25 working days for a five-day working week).
• Employees are entitled to unilaterally choose one day each year for taking a day off as part of their annual leave entitlement. The employee is obliged to give written notice of the chosen date no later than three months in advance.

Notification requirement

Undertakings that are established in an EU, an EEA Member State or in Switzerland are required to notify the Austrian Central Co-Ordinating Agency Charged with Investigating Illegal Employment of the posting or hiring out of workers before the start of work.