Around the debates about the new federal government, but also with regard to the Burgenland state elections, the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Andreas Wirth, clearly states what he wants: No new taxes, less bureaucracy and “rewards” for people who work hard.
Wirth is particularly interested in reducing non-wage labor costs: taxes on labor in Austria are similar to those on cigarettes and schnapps. With 47 percent taxation on labor, our country is one of the top five in Europe with the highest non-wage labor costs! That’s why we demand: Down with the additional wage costs! Wealth or inheritance taxes, which some parties are calling for, would only cause further damage to the economy.
In the current difficult economic situation, instead of new taxes, incentives are needed to encourage citizens and companies to invest. “This is the only way we can stimulate the economy – putting additional strain on it now is completely the wrong approach.” He also calls for incentives to motivate people to perform. The welfare state currently operates in such a way that people are not offered a safety net, but rather a comfortable hammock. We have to find a way to reward people for extra work, tax-free overtime, working in retirement – incentives are needed here. Because you won’t find anyone who says that we would have gotten out of the crisis with less work. Performance must be worth it!
“Bureaucracy as a smoking brake”
According to the business representative, “clear signals” are generally required from politicians, especially when it comes to curbing the current “excessive bureaucracy”. According to a study commissioned by the WKO, one-person companies would have to spend around 20 hours a week just dealing with bureaucracy, Wirth calculates: “Bureaucracy, documentation requirements and controls are the smoking brakes on companies. We need a clear and lean set of rules so that we entrepreneurs can concentrate on our core tasks again: bringing products onto the market and offering services.”
“More together instead of against each other”
In order to overcome current and future challenges, more cooperation will be required in the future, warns Wirth: “We finally need everyone to come together again – regardless of whether they are employers or employees, regardless of which party. Let’s just take the proposed reduction in working hours – many orders could no longer be fulfilled, many services would disappear from the market, and much less money would flow into the social system’s coffers, which would mean that health insurance benefits would be reduced. We will not be able to maintain our welfare state as we know it if people work less. This fairy tale must end!
Similar with wage increases. As a result, goods and services would become expensive and they would no longer remain in the stock market. A different approach is needed here: a reduction in non-wage labor costs benefits employers and employees. The time for muddling through is over: we finally need solutions and new approaches from the coming governments!”