New job in prospect

Kocher applies for National Bank governor

Economics Minister Martin Kocher has applied for the post of National Bank Governor, which will become vacant next year.

(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH)

Now it's confirmed: Minister of Labor and Economic Affairs Martin Kocher has applied for the position of National Bank Governor that will become vacant next year. In the "Krone" interview, he also explains what the government is still planning in the home office area and what the status is regarding the price comparison database for food. 

"Krone": Lower Austria's IV President pushed ahead with the demand to increase weekly working hours to 41 hours per week. The SPÖ is calling for a 32-hour week and, according to a new study, Austrians themselves would prefer to work 33.3 hours a week. What do you think is best?
Martin Kocher: It depends entirely on what work looks like in different areas and sectors. We have a wide range of collective agreements with standard weekly working hours of 36 to 40 hours. So there is a lot of flexibility. What I have always spoken out against is a legal change to standard working hours. In my view, it should remain as it is. In my view, 32 hours is not feasible. But I don't think it makes sense to provide for more standard working hours either. The current regulation is good and offers a lot of flexibility for the parties to the collective agreement to regulate it in a way that is appropriate for the respective industry. And then, of course, there is also the option of working part-time. You mentioned the 33.3 hours. At present, the actual average working time is less than this, namely around 30 hours. If you take all the people who work part-time and full-time together, then the desired working hours according to this study would actually be higher on average. I think the whole thing is really a discussion that is now being conducted ideologically, but it is not getting us anywhere.

It was never an issue and there were never any discussions about it. If you are nominated for a party, you naturally share the same values in many areas.

Martin Kocher auf die Frage zu einer möglichen ÖVP-Mitgliedschaft

Austria has the second-highest part-time employment rate in the European Union and also a top position in terms of absolute full-time hours. How hard-working are we really?
Very hard-working. You can see that in various figures. We have a high number of overtime hours, hence the demand for more tax exemption for overtime, as a reward, so to speak, for this work, which often has to be done because there are staff shortages. The actual hours worked per week, especially full-time, are also high. On the other hand, we also have a relatively large number of public holidays and days off compared to other countries, which have grown over time. So I think the discussion about working hours distracts from the fact that we need to differentiate. We need to focus on those who want to work full-time but cannot work full-time because there are too few childcare facilities, for example. Other debates don't really get us anywhere.

As you know, the municipalities are responsible for childcare. Have you already spoken to the new Federal President of the municipalities about this?
I am in very close contact with the Minister for Family Affairs, but also with the Association of Municipalities. You can't shift the entire burden onto the municipalities. That's why there is the four and a half billion in additional money. On the one hand, the municipalities have the difficulty of expanding quickly. That has to happen now with the additional money. But you also have to find nursery school teachers. We want to push ahead with the expansion of kindergarten and childcare places for one to three-year-olds because this is where the need is greatest. In Austria, the childcare rate from the age of three is well above average in the European Union, but there is a need to catch up for the under-threes.

According to the study, Austrians would like to spend 38.8 percent of their working hours working from home. They themselves announced more flexible rules around a year ago. The government term is coming to an end. Will the more flexible rules still come?
Yes, they will come, if I have my way. We have a finished draft that is currently being agreed within the coalition. The definition of working from home will be extended to include teleworking, so that there is more flexibility. I assume that we will adopt this before the end of the legislative period.

The price comparison database for food is also being coordinated. According to the SPÖ at least, there have been contradictory statements. Now you have the opportunity to clarify this. Do you think it is needed? And if it is needed, will it come?
Firstly, we already made it clear at an event last fall together with the Federal Competition Authority that there should be no public price comparison database because it does not meet the needs of all consumers who require different types of information. And there are already a number of private databases. What is now being politically coordinated is a proposal that envisages supermarkets providing the data via an interface and that a certain number of private providers of price comparison platforms, who have to meet special requirements, can receive this data and make it publicly available. We want to ensure that the focus is not only on the price, but also on the quality, the origin of the product and, of course, the quantity. These are the most important indicators for a fair price comparison. Without quality and origin, we do not have complete information, and we would be at a disadvantage, for example, with high-quality products that are produced domestically compared to cheap products from abroad. Our proposal is being politically coordinated. I very much hope that it will still be adopted, but we need a majority for it.

Discussions about the reintroduction of the guest worker model have recently resurfaced. What do you think of this?
We know from the experience of the last century that the model didn't work. Most of the people stayed and it took a long time for them to integrate. This means that if we know we need additional skilled migration, then it makes sense to organize it in such a way that it enables rapid integration into society. This was also demonstrated during this phase of guest worker migration in the last century. I think the slogans being spread by the FPÖ are completely unrealistic. It's also about striking the right balance. We are, of course, primarily focusing on addressing the potential of domestic workers and skilled workers. But you have to be honest, there is international competition for workers and skilled workers in many areas. Not only in the corporate sector, but also in the care and health sectors. And if there are no prospects of staying, then these workers and skilled workers will not come to Austria, but to other countries with similar demographic trends. Skilled workers from the European Economic Area and the Red-White-Red Card complement the domestic measures. We are constantly driving forward improvements in this area, having launched a new legal regulation in October 2022.

The Marienthal labor market project initiated by the current head of the SPÖ in Lower Austria has won international awards. The EU Commission is providing 20 million euros for projects based on this model. In Austria, however, the project was shut down. Why?
Because, as far as I know, it was always planned as a temporary project. So it was not discontinued. Together with the AMS, we support many similar projects. The Springboard program for the reintegration of the long-term unemployed was financed with 300 million euros over two years. The measures were incorporated into the regular program. The aim of the projects is to integrate people who have a particularly difficult time on the labor market into the primary labor market. That was the idea behind the Springboard program, in contrast to Aktion 20.000. Aktion 20.000, like the Marienthal project, focused very strongly on the public sector. And there is always the question of whether there is follow-up employment after the funded period. The Springboard program was primarily aimed at private companies and has led to long-term unemployment in Austria being almost halved. This current government is one of the most employee-friendly governments in a very long time.

Let's move on to your own workplace. You are still not a member of the ÖVP. Why not?
That was never an issue and there were never any discussions about it. If you're nominated for a party, you naturally share its values in many areas. In the last ten years, there have been several non-party ministers nominated by the ÖVP. This openness distinguishes the ÖVP from other parties in Austria.

Will you therefore not be on the ÖVP federal list for the National Council elections?
No, I will not be a candidate. Not because I don't find it exciting, but simply because I see more room for maneuver in an executive function at the moment.

The application deadline for the post of National Bank Governor ended on Monday. You have already been publicly linked to it several times. Have you now applied?
I have personally promised that I will complete the legislative period as a minister in the best possible way. That is very important to me and then we will see what options there are. I assume that the ÖVP will be successful in the National Council elections and that Karl Nehammer will remain Federal Chancellor. I also really enjoyed being a scientist. Of course, there are other functions besides that of minister that are very interesting for an economist. In my view, monetary policy, currency policy and financial market stability will play an even more important role in the future. That's why I applied for the position of National Bank Governor. It is a task that offers important opportunities to shape Austria, Europe and the location in a positive way.