Employee Experience in Austria

The Global Employee Experience Report allows you to access workplace culture, employee engagement, employee happiness and employee wellness in Austria. These four main indexes compose the overall Employee Experience Score that sets the ground rules for the future of work.

Bases of Employee Engagement 

Although they are disciplined about work, they do not support the intense work tempo. Working hours on average is 40 hours per week. Employers consider work-life balance and it is critical for employee engagement. The state also supports maternity/paternity leave. There is a high emphasis on employee wellbeing. In order to enable employees to spend more productive time at work, facilities such as massage and yoga are offered in the workplaces.  Such examples provide employee engagement and employee satisfaction. 

Internal Communication and Employee Feedback Structure

Companies in Austria take care to define their job responsibilities well. It has a vertical structure with a hierarchical system. They are organized and orderly in their business dealings. Formality dominates internal communication; however new generation companies in Austria tend to have a less hierarchical structure. Transparent communication is essential and employees want to follow company news more often. Employee feedback is taken seriously for talent development. While feedbacks can be direct, it is common to share feedback openly with peers.

Pillars of Workplace Culture

Pay Attention to the Rules of Respect 

Etiquette is very important for Austrian partners. If you want your business partnership to last for a long time, you should pay attention to the rules of respect. Respectful communication will be the key. Therefore, make sure to address emails with proper titles and to follow protocol in all business dealings. Another thing to be aware of is that Austrians tend to prefer third-party introductions for new business.

Known Responsibilities

Austrians value academic titles and individual achievements. Within businesses, different departments have clear distinctions between them, and responsibilities are clearly mapped out. It gives ease in using the performance management tools given the clear company structure. On the other hand, employees would like to see their contributions to the company and directly affect employee engagement.

Punctuality is Important 

Punctuality is just as crucial in Austria as it is in German work culture. Meetings and interviews are pre-planned and included in calendars and agendas and everyone is expected to put afford before the meetings. 

Attention to Wellness and Inclusion

With increased immigration, diversity in Austria has increased considerably over the past decade. Austria places a lot of importance on equality within its community. As a result, a robust welfare system with supportive health, employment, retirement, and education systems is in place. These factors contribute to Austria’s high quality of life and its low rate of unemployment.

Solemnity in Meetings 

Australian business people want meetings to be official. They do not like excessive insincerity. They prefer to pass the meetings with reports and numerical data. 

Learning & Development of Future Talents

On average, 68% of all upper secondary students enrolled in VET programs in Austria, a higher proportion than the OECD average of 42%. In 2019, 42% of 25-34 year-olds had a higher learning degree in Austria compared to 45% on average across OECD countries. 

Performance & Productivity GDP per Hour Worked: 102.2

Part-time Employment Rate: 19.5% 

Average Wages: 3.790 EUR

Employee Turnover Rate: 11.4%

Minimum Wages: 1500 € per month based on collective agreements.

Population: 9.006.398 (2021)

Unemployment Rate: Total 5.8% - Male 5.9% - Female 5.6%