Price rise set for many in Vienna housing associations

Categories
Politics

By Matthias Loinig The year 2013 is going to start off an expensive one for more than  2,500 people living in Vienna housing associations. The reason is that building contracts that were signed 60 years ago will run out from the end of 2012. Many of the buildings were built in the 1920s when there […]

Austrian building boom

Categories
Business

The Austrian building business is once again booming after the financial crisis fuelled by heavy investment in property as fears grow over financial markets. In the western Austrian province of Salzburg business is booming the most. According to the latest statistics from Statistic Austria the volume of building contracts has increased by 80 per cent […]

Teachers ready to fight contract reform

Categories
Education

Unionists are alarmed by news that the education ministry plans to make significant changes to teachers’ contracts. Social Democratic (SPÖ) Education Minister Claudia Schmied reportedly wants to abolish various privileges of the country’s teachers. Works council committee officials are especially angered about claims that the minister intends to get rid of clauses which protect academics […]

No end to AUA argument

Categories
Business

Austrian Airlines (AUA) keep up the fight against the executive board’s plans to cut their incomes. AUA CEO Jaan Albrecht wants to introduce a new contract for the 600 pilots of the struggling carrier. The salary reform would mean a 25 per cent reduction of pilots’ wages. The new contracts would resemble the ones Tyrolean […]

AUA turnaround unlikely despite austerity accord

Categories
Business

Austrian Airlines (AUA) is not expected to make it into the black this year despite the recent agreement between bosses and works council chiefs. The struggling airline’s executive board agreed with works committee leaders to cut pilots’ wages by 25 per cent on average soon. The AUA pilots’ representatives managed to avoid an enforced change […]

AUA supervisory board finalises contract correction

Categories
Business

Austrian Airlines (AUA) head Jaan Albrecht has promised that customers will not be negatively affected by the firm’s contract reform. The supervisory board of the loss-making carrier decided yesterday (Thurs) to annul the contracts of all pilots and cabin crew employees. AUA bosses hope to save 45 million Euros a year that way. Unionists and […]

Vienna Prater Park Opens for Business

Categories
Travel

This weekend was the official start for the opening of the funfair and amusement Park section of the Prater park, known as the Wurstelprater. It includes 250 attractions which are accessed from the controversial Riesenradplatz that had been originally criticised because of cost – but feedback since its opening has been entirely positive from the […]

Lufthansa all-clear for AUA capital increase

Categories
Business

Austrian Airlines (AUA) is set to receive fresh capital from Lufthansa while bosses up the pressure on the ailing carrier’s pilots. Lufthansa CEO Christoph Franz said yesterday (Thurs) that the Viennese airline – which was acquired by Lufthansa in September 2009 – would get 140 million Euros. He warned that the money would only be […]

AUA tickets to get more costly again

Categories
Business

Austrian Airlines (AUA) has decided to jack up ticket prices – only two months after the most recent increase. The struggling carrier, which suffered a loss of 65 million Euros in each of the past two years, said yesterday (Weds) its kerosene surcharge would increase as of next Tuesday (28 February). The airline explained that […]

17-year-old confesses to 17,000 Euro fraud

Categories
General News

A 17-year-old boy has been caught after selling 17,000 Euros worth of electrical equipment that he acquired after forging contracts and identification in Salzburg. For more than a month beginning in April of this year, the boy completed contracts with different mobile network operators in Salzburg under a false name. Through these contracts he received […]