The evil employer. The unwilling employee. It is always in the eye of the beholder. A good contractual basis can prevent discussions. Read more.

As a matter of principle, it should be noted that in Austria both sides of an employment relationship, i.e. the employer and the employee, are always based on a contract. It does not matter whether "something" has been signed or not. The registration by the company and the commencement of work by the employee constitute a valid legal transaction. In this case, the collective agreement valid for the respective sector applies, which was negotiated and determined by the representatives of the interests. Minimum salaries, holiday pay, Christmas bonuses, annual wage increases and other things are regulated here and are binding as minimum standards. However, it is customary and also sensible to sign an employment contract in written form on both sides. In the event of a dispute, it provides an important basis for a solution. It is important to know that an employment contract may never place the employee in a worse position than agreed in the collective agreement. In most cases, however, the content of a specific one, tailored to the employee's field of activity, goes beyond the collective agreement. It specifies the deadlines, whether it is a fixed-term or open-ended employment relationship, how long the notice period is, when sick leave must be taken and how long the probationary period is. As with all contracts, the better the basis is negotiated and laid down, the less need there will be to resort to it.