On December 21st at 10:30 p.m. on ORF 2
Vienna (OTS) – They help with childbirth as midwives, have a small business or can work from anywhere as an IT specialist. Often a desk with a computer, a small street bar and an entry in the company register are enough: you are now an entrepreneur. More than 60 percent of all companies in Austria are now one-person companies – so-called EPUs. One-person entrepreneurs forego – voluntarily or involuntarily – the security of employment. Some are also forced into self-employment due to different circumstances. Be it because they would otherwise be unemployed or because companies outsource work services. On the other hand, individual entrepreneurship is an opportunity for many people – especially young people – to explore their talents and interests on their own responsibility and to work creatively and productively without shouts from the boardroom.
Despite the large number, the EPU does not have a large lobby. Many work significantly more than permanent employees – and without regular monthly salary payments with vacation and Christmas bonuses. If a one-person entrepreneur is sick, the business stops. Negotiations between the social partners are currently underway to create a better legal framework for one-person companies.
For the “Eco Spezial” edition “The company is me: one-person company between freedom and self-exploitation” presented by Dieter Bornemann – to be seen on Thursday, December 21, 2023, at 10:30 p.m. on ORF 2 – Werner Jambor visited five one-person entrepreneurs who live their independence on a small scale in very different areas. How are they doing in their working lives between self-realization and self-exploitation? And why did you choose this type of self-employment?