The Austrian government is hoping to curb the risk of a political upset from the far right by attempting to address social discontent. To this end, Chancellor Christian Kern said at the World Economic Forum on Jan. 18 that the European Union must accept a new Austrian government proposal to prioritize local jobseekers over applicants from other EU member states. Otherwise, he warned, the Continental bloc risks dealing with a new, right-wing government elected by frustrated Austrian voters.
Kern heads a coalition government formed by his center-left Social Democratic Party of Austria and the center-right Austrian People's Party and his statements at Davos refer to a recent government proposal. This proposal has not yet been formulated into a draft bill, so details are still vague. The government hopes to implement a law whereby EU citizens from countries where the income is less than 80 percent that of Austria could only work in the country if no local is found to fill the position.
It is part of a 10-year economic plan that the Austrian government presented Jan. 11 that aims to create 200,000 jobs by 2020 and eliminate unemployment, which is at a record high. Kern himself assumed his post at a highly polarized time. His predecessor, former Chancellor Werner Faymann, resigned in May 2016 after the two parties in the ruling coalition were defeated in the first round of presidential elections. Norbert Hofer of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria lost the resulting presidential runoff by only 30,000 votes to Alexander Van der Bellen, an independent candidate backed by the Green Party. The vote was invalidated due to irregularities and, ultimately, Van der Bellen won by a larger margin, signaling the defeat of the far right but the victory of a party outside of the mainstream.
The Freedom Party of Austria is the country's most popular party and polls around 34 percent — well ahead of Kern's Social Democratic Party, which is at 27 percent. The far right party has made gains since previous elections in 2013, when it had approval ratings of only 20 percent. The Austrian government is now trying to stifle its ascent with attempts to address the concerns of Austrian voters. In addition to the proposal on regulating foreign jobseekers, the government has imposed legislation to limit asylum seekers and extend border controls with other Schengen zone members.
But Vienna's proposal to give preference to Austrian nationals in the labor market runs contrary to EU rules on the free movement of peoples in the bloc. Switzerland — not an EU member but with access to the EU single market — was embroiled in a similar battle recently. In 2014, a Swiss referendum came out in favor of migrant quotas. Because this would have violated agreements with the European Union, the Swiss government compromised by substituting national preferences for local workers. The EU Commission has yet to make a final decision on whether Switzerland's compromise policy is acceptable.
If Austria decides to proceed with its plan, it could face an infringement procedure by EU institutions and, ultimately, sanctions. The European Commission is in charge of protecting EU treaties and ensuring that Austria respects the rules. Kern said that he had already spoken about the issue with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and warned him of the plight of the Austrian government. Vienna faces the same dilemma of many EU governments trying to limit immigration. The difference is that Austria has turned to limit even EU nationals — a position other members could try to emulate.
