Compared to Europe in general, firm pension schemes are a relatively rare phenomenon in Austria. Whereas on a European average, every second worker is included in a form of firm pension scheme, in Austria only one in six dependently employed workers can lay claims on a company pension. The WIFO...

In an international hierarchy of labour costs, Austria currently ranks 9th and is thus well within the EU average. Labour is most expensive in Norway, where one hour of work is paid 34 percent higher than in Austria, followed by Denmark (+29 percent), Germany (+26 percent) and Switzerland (+24...

The unit labour cost position of Austrian businesses improved clearly in the second half of the 1990s and has remained largely stable since the year 2000. In Austrian manufacturing, one hour of blue-collar labour cost 20.80 € in 2004, hence approximately 2.25 percent less than the average paid...

The stormy years following introduction of the single market appear to be over at last. In spite of the fact that the premium level in the main segments was cut for good, insurers were for the first time able to impose substantial increases in premium rates in 2001, a development which is...

In 2002, private insurers saw their revenues from premiums grow in alignment with GDP at current prices. Due to price increases, property and liability insurance once again expanded its traditional dominance. For 2003, revenues from premiums are expected to rise slightly above the growth rate of...

In 2000, private insurance companies achieved a premium growth similar to their successful performance in the previous year. All insurance categories once again recorded a boost in their sales. Life insurance continues to be the sector's main engine. At a growth rate of one eighth, the share of...

Austria currently takes 11th place in an international ranking of unit labour costs. Labour is most expensive in Norway, Germany and Switzerland, where one hour of manufacturing labour costs almost a quarter more than in Austria. In Austrian manufacturing, one hour of work cost € 20.31 in...

In an international hierarchy of labour costs, Austria ranks 11th, after Germany, Switzerland, the Scandinavian countries, Japan, the U.S. and the Netherlands. The labour factor is most expensive in Germany. At ATS 340 per hour of labour, German manufacturers pay more than a quarter over the...

In Austria, the discussion of old-age pensions has so far been based on highly pessimistic demographic perspectives and the assumption of a static labour market situation. Whereas the demographic projections for the next 30 years prepared in the second half of the 1990s were starting out from a...