Major job offensive

ÖBB advertises 4100 new jobs per year

ÖBB is looking for thousands of new employees.

(Bild: ÖBB)

ÖBB is launching a massive job offensive, primarily due to the retirement wave of the so-called baby boomer generation. According to Group CEO Andreas Matthä, an average of 4100 new employees will be needed by 2030.

He is promoting Austrian Federal Railways as a secure and sustainable employer. Turnover is increasing in the passenger and freight sector despite the bleak economic situation.

Currently more than 45,000 ÖBB employees
Last year alone, 6,200 people joined ÖBB, which now has a total of 45,520 employees including the takeover of the regional German provider. In view of the immense number of applications, efforts are being made to "treat them with respect", said Matthä. There were 120,000 in 2024.

ÖBB employs people in 130 professions. Around 2000 apprentices are currently being trained in 28 apprenticeships. Around three quarters of the young people who complete their training are taken on by the Group.

Group CEO Andreas Matthä

(Bild: Juergen Fuchs)

Recruiting victims of bankrupt companies
In order to recruit the necessary number of people, ÖBB also cooperates with larger companies that are laying off staff. This is the case, for example, with KTM in Upper Austria or Magna in Styria, said Matthä. In Vienna, there is also a "job store" in a shopping center in the third district. You can apply there directly. There is also an internal program through which employees can bring relatives or friends to ÖBB.

As if that wasn't enough, there are bonuses of twice 2,500 euros for individual jobs. This applies to shifters and dispatchers. The first 2500 euros are paid after a probationary period, the second after a successful final examination. Around 300 people are being sought for each of these two jobs this year.

ÖBB still has 29 percent of its employees who cannot be dismissed. The company stopped issuing permanent contracts in 1995. In about ten years, the last people to benefit from this will all have retired.

Thousands of employees about to retire
The staff are needed not only because of the wave of retirements, but also because the service has recently increased steadily - and after a stable year in 2025, there will be another increase in transport performance next year thanks to the opening of the Koralm railway tunnel.

"Delays caused 50 percent abroad"
While the Koralm railway tunnel will significantly increase the comfort and speed of travelers between Vienna and Klagenfurt via Graz, new interregional traffic will also be needed in the Mur Valley and on the Pyhrnbahn, said the railroad manager. According to Matthä, annoyances at ÖBB were caused by events abroad. "Fifty percent of all delays were caused in this way."