Information for Employers
Foreign companies that post their employees to Austria or temporarily employ them in Austria transnationally, or that hire employees whose usual place of work is Austria, have been subject to the Construction Workers’ Annual Leave and Severance Pay Act [Bauarbeiter-Urlaubs- und Abfertigungsgesetz] (BUAG) with regard to leave provisions since 1 September 2005.
The posting or temporary employment company is therefore required to pay holiday supplements to BUAK for each worker performing construction activities pursuant to BUAG for the duration of their posting period.
Based on the initial reports submitted by your company (reports pursuant to AVRAG – ZKO3 or AÜG – ZKO4 also count as initial reports pursuant to § 33g (2) BUAG), or on other information relevant to settlements (see § 22 (5) BUAG), BUAK stipulates monthly leave supplements to be paid by the company.
How is the leave supplement calculated?
The daily supplement that the company has to pay for each working day is calculated based on the employee’s currently valid CA wage (hourly wage provided for in the collective agreement) according to the following formula:
(CA wage + 20%) x factor / 5
The factor is based on the normal weekly working hours. In the Supplements Directive in Federal Law Gazette II no. 419/2010, the Federal Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection [Bundesministerium für Arbeit, Soziales, Gesundheit und Konsumentenschutz] (BMASGK) specified the following factors as of 1 January 2011:
- for 40.0 hours, the factor is > 11.85
- for 39.0 hours, the factor is > 11.55
- for 38.5 hours, the factor is > 11.40
What services are financed with the leave supplement?
Starting on the first day of the posting period, the employee earns an obligatory entitlement to paid leave pursuant to the provisions of BUAG (see Section II of BUAG). The amount of the leave entitlement is based on the number of weeks of employment in Austria (qualifying weeks). However, the actual leave entitlement is only awarded to the extent of the supplements paid by the employer.
The company can claim the leave remuneration entitlement from BUAK by submitting the form “Leave Agreement pursuant to § 33f BUAG”. Once the application has been reviewed and accepted, BUAK then pays the net holiday remuneration directly to the employee.
BUAK also pays the social security contributions, wage tax and ancillary costs for the company and leave supplements for the days of leave that are taken.
The necessary forms for the submission of applications for holiday remuneration are available for download, along with other useful information.