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[Austrian Unions Criticize Declining Real Wages, Call for Pay Raises and Training] ⑴ The head of the Austrian Transport and Services Union (vida) stated that they will strive for a decent collective bargaining agreement in the autumn wage negotiations, criticizing the decline in real wages since 2019. ⑵ From July 2019 to July 2026, real wages are expected to decline by approximately 1%, with the catering and accommodation sector and manufacturing sector seeing declines of approximately 3% and 2% respectively. ⑶ This autumn, the union will begin collective bargaining wage negotiations with the Austrian Federal Chamber of Economic Affairs for sectors including public transport, railways, retail, freight, cleaning, and private security. ⑷ The union is demanding substantial wage increases, citing high workloads and staffing needs in these sectors. Autumn negotiations will begin in October. ⑸ Due to a two-year crisis agreement reached by social partners last year, the metals industry will not participate in the autumn negotiations this year. ⑹ The rolling inflation rate over the past 12 months has exceeded 3%, driven by rising service and energy prices; the collective bargaining increase in the retail sector over the past two years has not kept pace with inflation. (7) Union leaders criticized the crisis agreement for not making food cheaper, but rather worsening the situation for workers, and called for a positive outlook on the domestic economy, stating that higher wages are the fuel the economy needs. (8) The Austrian National Bank recently predicted that real economic growth this year would be around 0.5%, with an inflation rate of around 3%. (9) Union leaders believe that the crisis narrative presented by business representatives has damaged the country's business position; only some Austrian industries are in crisis, while many sectors such as tourism and transportation are thriving. (10) Regarding vocational training, data from public employment services shows that at the end of August, approximately 11,600 apprentices were available for immediate employment, while there were only about 6,300 vacant apprenticeship positions. (11) Union leaders criticized the existence of training strikes in the business sector, noting that many companies are increasingly relying on seasonal foreign workers and those with "red, white, and red cards" (traditional Austrian visas) from third countries rather than training their own skilled workers. 12 He also pointed out that about 46 million hours of overtime and extra working hours last year were not compensated with economic or time off in lieu, and employees estimated that they lost about 2.5 billion euros in gross wages, while the country lost about 1.2 billion euros in tax revenue and social security contributions. He called for the enactment of a criminal law against labor crimes.