- Applies to:
- Austria-wide
Collective Agreement for the Master Timber Construction Trade
concluded between the Federal Guild of Timber Construction on the one hand and the Austrian Trade Union Federation, Construction – Timber Trade Union, on the other hand
Status of the consolidated version: May 1, 2022
Table of contents
§ 2A Other distribution of normal working hours
§ 3 Overtime, Sunday, holiday and night work
§ 4 Surcharges for overtime, Sunday, holiday and night work
§ 7 Remuneration in case of absence from work
§ 8 Wage calculation and payment
§ 9 Business Travel Remuneration
§ 13 Vacation and vacation allowance
§ 15 Termination of the employment relationship
This framework collective agreement (as of May 1, 2022) is not an authentic collective agreement text. All information is provided without guarantee, and any liability for errors in this text is excluded.
§ 1 Scope
This collective agreement covers
a) spatially: to the territory of the Republic of Austria,
b) personally: to all employees (including apprentices) who are not employees within the meaning of the Employees Act and who are employed by one of the establishments referred to in c),
c) professional: to all companies whose owners are members of the Federal Guild of Timber Construction within the meaning of the professional organization regulations, in the currently valid version.
§ 2 Working hours
1st
2. The start and end of working hours can also be determined by the arrival at the construction site and the departure from the construction site
3. If on days due to adverse weather conditions or other circumstances the applicable working hours cannot be observed, the employer or his representative shall, in agreement with the works council, determine the start and end of the working hours or any induction periods.
4. The weekly working time of 39 hours shall not apply in the following cases:
a) On contribution hours.
b) Minor preparatory and final work (auxiliary work) that must precede or follow the actual work process at the workplace, eg collecting and delivering one's own tools or those provided by the company, cleaning equipment, etc. This also includes the preparatory and final work of the supervisory staff.
c) On the working hours of permanent site and construction security guards and doormen. The maximum working week in these cases is 48 hours. The daily working hours in such cases may not exceed 12 hours. The persons affected by this provision shall have a day of rest after six consecutive working days, ie a 36-hour rest period. Every third day of rest must be a Sunday.
d) The working hours of drivers and co-drivers, kitchen and other warehouse staff. For these, overtime of up to 8 hours per week can be agreed within the company in accordance with Section 7 Paragraph 2 of the Working Hours Act.
5. The 24th and 31st of December are days off work, with continued payment of wages for the hours of work missed.
§ 2A Other distribution of normal working hours
1. General
In addition to the regular weekly normal working hours of 39 hours pursuant to Section 2, a different distribution of the weekly normal working hours is possible in the companies, subject to the application of the respective participation rights and consent requirements.
According to Section 11 Paragraph 2a of the Child and Young Persons Employment Act, a different distribution of the normal weekly working hours is also permitted for workers and apprentices under the age of 18.
2. Extension of normal working hours and time off in lieu
The regular weekly normal working hours can be extended up to 40 hours. In order to achieve the collectively agreed weekly normal working hours of 39 hours, time off in lieu must be in whole days.
The time off must be made within an averaging period. If the averaging period is more than 13 weeks up to a maximum of 52 weeks (1 year), a works agreement is required to determine this, and where there is no works council, a written individual agreement is required.
3. Time compensation
The difference between the average weekly normal working hours and the collectively agreed weekly normal working hours (39 hours) is to be compensated by time compensation in whole days:
If the time off for in-work time is not determined in advance by agreement in accordance with section 2, the time at which it is taken must be agreed between the employer and the employee. If no agreement is reached, in-work time must be taken before the end of the averaging period. In the case of vacation, public holidays and paid absence from work before the end of the averaging period, in-work time must be taken immediately before or after. If this is not possible for important reasons within the meaning of Section 20 AZG, it can be carried forward to the next payroll period. If the time off for in-work time is not determined in advance, if working hours are distributed in accordance with section 2, there is no entitlement to in-work time for the days of paid vacation (ie no time credit for in-work time). If in-work time cannot be taken for reasons on the part of the employer, at the end of the agreed averaging period, the time worked in excess of 39 hours per week is to be counted as overtime and paid; in all other cases, the hourly wage without overtime premium is payable.
With the exception of mutually agreed vacation, public holidays and compensatory rest in accordance with the Working Rest Act, any previously agreed time off for compensatory time remains valid in all cases of paid and unpaid absence from work. In these cases, agreed time off is considered to have been used up.
4. Notification of the respective weekly working hours
Within the framework of the weekly normal working hours agreed for the averaging period, the extent and location must be determined two weeks in advance, taking into account Section 97 Paragraph 1 Item 2 of the Labor Constitution Act , and communicated to the employees concerned in an appropriate form, unless important and unforeseeable events occur that cannot be influenced by the employer. In this case, the working hours must be arranged as soon as possible.
5. Overtime
The extent to which the normal weekly working hours are reduced (previously 40 hours, 1 hour per week) is overtime; this additional work is not counted towards the permitted amount of overtime. This principle also applies if the normal working hours are distributed differently.
Except in cases where a normal working day of more than 9 hours is permitted by law, the daily working hours may not exceed 9 hours. Furthermore, the weekly working hours may not exceed 41 hours due to the additional work, except in the case of shift work, training in connection with public holidays in accordance with Section 4 Paragraph 3 AZG and in cases of longer normal working hours in the collective agreement. The same commission applies to the ordering of additional work as to the ordering of overtime in accordance with Section 6 Paragraph 2 AZG. Additional hours must be ordered in advance and designated as such; retroactive designation is not permitted.
Working hours for which an overtime premium of more than 50% is to be paid under the collective agreement are not considered additional work but overtime.
6. Favorability clause
It is stated that the provisions of this paragraph on the different distribution of normal working hours and the reduction of the collectively agreed normal working hours to 39 hours represent overall a more favorable regulation than the Working Hours Act. Deviations of individual commissions from the statutory regulations are compensated for by the reduction of the normal working hours to 39 hours and the agreed wage compensation.
§ 2B Flexible working hours
1. Normal working hours may be distributed irregularly within an averaging period of up to 52 weeks so that the average working hours do not exceed 39 hours per week over the averaging period. This arrangement must be agreed upon in writing with each employee by works agreement in companies where no works council has been established.
2. The extension of normal working hours per week may be up to 45 hours in 26 calendar weeks within a period of 52 weeks.
In this way, a maximum of 156 hours of time credit can be acquired after the 39th up to and including the 45th hour of the week within 52 weeks from the start of the first averaging period. The hours exceeding this are to be counted as overtime and paid.
The difference between the average weekly normal working hours and the weekly normal working hours stipulated in the collective agreement (39 hours) is to be compensated by time off in full days.
3. During the averaging period, wages are due to the average normal working hours of 39 hours. Hourly-based remuneration components (allowances, bonuses) are calculated based on the hours worked.
4. If the time balance has not been fully made up at the end of the averaging period, it must be made up within a grace period of one month. If the employee is ill at the time of use or is otherwise prevented from using the time credit for personal reasons, the period is extended by this time. If the balance is not made up, the time credit must be paid as overtime. A negative hourly balance is considered to have been worked at the end of the averaging period.
5. If there is a time credit at the end of the employment relationship, compensation will be paid at the hourly rate in the event of justified dismissal of the employee, voluntary termination of the employment contract by the employee or resignation without good cause, and in other cases at the overtime rate. The employee must repay any time debt at the end of the employment relationship in the event of justified dismissal of the employee, voluntary termination of the employment contract by the employee or resignation without good cause.
6. The employee must be informed of the number of credit hours worked during the payroll period and the balance of the credit hours account with each payroll payment.
7. The agreement pursuant to section 1 must contain more detailed provisions on how the respective normal working hours are determined and how time off is claimed. The working hours schedule, the location and extent of normal working hours must be communicated to each employee affected at least 2 weeks before the start of the averaging period.
By mutual agreement, a change to this schedule is permissible by works agreement or, in companies without a works council, by written individual agreements and must be communicated to the employees on the last working day before the start of the corresponding calendar week.
8. Within the meaning of Section 11 Paragraph 2a of the Child and Young Persons Employment Act, a different distribution of the normal weekly working hours is also permissible for workers and apprentices under 18 years of age.
§ 3 Overtime, Sunday, holiday and night work
1. Overtime is defined as working time which exceeds the respective fixed daily or weekly normal working hours pursuant to Section 2, 2A or 2B as well as additional work pursuant to Section 2A, Paragraph 6.
Overtime is in any case
(a) any unit of time exceeding a normal daily working time of 9 hours, except in cases where a longer normal daily working time is permitted by law,
b) any time unit exceeding 1 hour of overtime per week will be remunerated at the appropriate additional rate.
In the case of short-time work, overtime is defined as the working time that exceeds the daily working hours set as the basis for the 39-hour week. In companies where the normal working hours are less than 39 hours a week, the working hours that exceed the daily working hours set are considered additional work. This provision does not apply in cases where the normal 39-hour working time cannot be adhered to, for example due to traffic difficulties.
2. No employee may be forced to work overtime or extra hours, but preparatory and final work as well as work that cannot be postponed must be carried out on the express instruction of the employer or his representative.
3. Sunday work is defined as work on Sundays between 0 and 24 hours.
4. Night work is defined as work between 8 pm and 5 am Minor preparatory and final work that precedes or follows the actual work process is not considered night work.
5. The following are public holidays: January 1st, January 6th, Easter Monday, May 1st, Ascension Day, Whit Monday, Corpus Christi, August 15th, October 26th, November 1st, December 8th, 25th and 26th. Good Friday is a public holiday for members of the Protestant churches AB and HB, the Old Catholic Church and the Methodist Church within the meaning of the Working Rest Act - ARG - Federal Law Gazette I No. 152/15 in its currently valid version.
6. For the working hours lost on public holidays (from 0 to 24 hours), regular remuneration must be paid in accordance with the Working Rest Act - ARG - Federal Law Gazette I No. 152/15. If one of the holidays mentioned in paragraph 5 falls on a Sunday, it is not considered a public holiday. In such a case, any work performed will be paid in accordance with the other provisions of this collective agreement for Sunday work. Employees who are absent from work on the working day before and after a public holiday will only receive remuneration for the holiday if there is a reason for their absence within the meaning of Section 7 of this collective agreement. This commission does not apply if work is suspended by mutual agreement.
7. If work is not carried out on a public holiday not listed in the Working Rest Act by order of the employer, the lost working hours shall be paid in accordance with the collective agreement.
8. If a public holiday falls on a working day on which no work is normally carried out, no pay will be paid for that holiday if no work is carried out.
§ 4 Surcharges for overtime, Sunday, holiday and night work
1. The basis for calculating the allowances is the hourly wage.
2. Allowances pursuant to Section 6 shall not be taken into account when calculating the supplements.
3. The following surcharges shall be paid, except for preparatory and final work pursuant to Section 3, Paragraph 2 and for work pursuant to Section 2, Paragraph 4 a) and b):
a) for overtime between 5 am and 8 pm and for additional work 50%
b) for overtime between 8 pm and 5 am 100%
c) for working hours, excluding overtime, between 8 pm and 5 am 50%
If overtime is performed after 5 am following these working hours, it must be paid at a surcharge of 100 percent.
d) for Sunday work 100%
e) for work carried out on public holidays,
aa) if it falls on a working day on which, due to the public holiday itself, there is a right to rest from work and continued payment of wages, 50% (thus public holiday pay and wages increased by 50 percent),
bb) if it falls on a working day on which, due to the weekly working time schedule, no work is regularly carried out, 100% (hence wages with a 100% surcharge).
f) If work is carried out which requires the employee to work for more than 16 hours in one go, whereby for every 8 hours of work within that time, up to 1 1/2 hours of meal and rest breaks are not considered to be an interruption of the work in one go, then a surcharge of 150% will be charged for the entire working time, even if it falls within normal working hours. The meal and rest breaks are generally unpaid breaks.
4. If an employee is unable to complete the working hours set for the working day in question because he
a) is absent from the company and is entitled to remuneration in accordance with Section 7,
b) for reasons excused by the employer,
c) due to force majeure
is absent, he is entitled to payment of additional payments for those hours worked beyond the normal working hours.
5. If several surcharges apply simultaneously, only the highest surcharge shall apply.
6. For the employees referred to in Section 2, paragraph 4 c) and d), a flat rate for overtime may be agreed.
§ 5 Wages
1. The wage rates for the individual employment groups are recorded in a wage table (appendix or appendix) and form an integral part of this collective agreement.
2. Piecework can be agreed. The piecework agreement must be signed by the employer or his representative, all employees involved in the piecework and the responsible works council. In the case of piecework, the contractual hourly wage is guaranteed.
3. The compensation of premiums for overtime, Sunday, holiday and night work as well as allowances through increased wages or increased piece rates is not permitted.
§ 6 Allowances
For the following work, allowances are payable on top of the normal hourly wage for the time during which the work is carried out. If several allowances are payable at the same time, up to two work allowances are generally to be paid in parallel, namely the two highest allowances.
a) Supervision
Carpenters who supervise an independent work party of at least 3 employees receive a 15% allowance for the duration of their employment.
They are obliged to work themselves. Employees whose wage rates already include the allowance for supervision (foremen and assistant foremen) are not entitled to this allowance.
b) Dirty and demolition work
For work during which the employee comes into contact with smoke, soot, ash or other particularly dirty substances to a considerable extent, as well as the removal of tram or Dippelbaum ceilings, including the clearing of fill, for the removal of ceiling plaster and for the fastening of Heraklith panels to ceilings and sloping roofs 10%
Workers who are engaged in demolition work, as well as employees who are exposed to particular dust during the demolition work 15%
c) High work
- For work on towers at a height of 16 m above ground level and for scaffolding on towers at a height of 10 m above ground level 15%
- For work on silos with a minimum height of 30 m and more above ground, an allowance must be paid from a height of 16 m above ground, and for work on buildings with a minimum height of 30 m above ground, an allowance must be paid from the eighth floor above ground for the following work:
aa) Erection, removal of scrap or main scaffolding and relocation of the aforementioned scaffolding.
bb) Formwork and stripping (of concrete formwork) on external and side building walls, unless an adjacent building or main scaffolding reaches the height of the work platform.
cc) Scaffolding work in silos, measured from 16 m, hopper bottom 10% - (not applicable)
- Employees who are employed in the assembly or disassembly of suspended and ladder scaffolding receive 15%
d) For work while roped in 10%
e) Work on construction sites in the mountains
The allowance is 12% for altitudes
above 1600 m to 2000 m and
20% above 2000 m
f) Cableway support and drilling rig work:
Work on cableway supports and drilling rigs shall be remunerated with an allowance on top of the hourly wage due, namely for the preparation, erection and repair work and transport of the structural components, namely:
aa) on level ground for workers engaged in installation work 20 %
bb) in hilly terrain 30%
cc) on slopes with a gradient of more than 30 percent and in the mountains 40 %
These allowances are paid for a construction height of 10 m above the ground.
For the cases referred to in bb) and cc), the allowance is paid for the manual transport of the construction parts to the installation site, for the preparation of the construction parts (on site), for the installation and for repair work on the objects in question.
§ 7 Remuneration in case of absence from work
1. Illness and accident at work:
The entitlement to remuneration in the event of illness and accident at work is regulated and applicable in the Continued Remuneration Act (BGBl. No. 399/1974) in the currently valid version.
2. Doctor's visits, outpatient treatment and health checks:
The employee is entitled to remuneration for the hours of work necessarily missed for doctor's visits, outpatient treatment and health checks.
Remuneration is only due for doctor's visits, outpatient treatments and health checks that could not be carried out outside of working hours and only if another doctor could not have carried them out without or with less missed working hours.
3. In the event of absence from work due to important personal reasons relating to the employee, in particular:
a) Summonses to courts, authorities and public offices, if these are not matters for which the employee is responsible and the employee can prove this with a written summons or an official confirmation of the necessary time.
b) Proceedings in one's own case before ordinary courts, if the claim has been granted, unless the defendant has also been ordered to pay compensation for loss of earnings, the necessary time.
c) Your own wedding and the wedding of your own children 1 day
d) Birth of own children 1 day
e) Death of the spouse or partner and children (foster children) 3 days
f) Death of parents, siblings, parents-in-law, grandparents 1 day
g) Serious illness of family members belonging to the household, provided that the doctor certifies that the employee's presence is necessary for temporary care 1 day
h) Relocation, once per calendar year 1 day
(i) When summoned for conscription, the necessary time shall be granted.
j) A one-off paid time off is entitled to complete the apprenticeship examination for the time required.
k) Apprentices shall be granted paid time off for the first attempt at the Class B driving test for the time required; a maximum of one working day.
Reasons for impediment that are not to be recognized include, in particular:
summons to courts, authorities and offices in one's own case if the matter is one's own fault, or to court hearings in which the claim was not granted. Summons to tax authorities due to arrears in taxes if the tax arrears actually exist. Arrest and other prison sentences.
Submitting complaints or petitions to courts or authorities that can be dealt with in writing. Working as an assessor in courts or offices, member of the local council or in other public institutions.
§ 8 Wage calculation and payment
1. Payment is made for the time:
a) during which work was carried out, whereby the employer must employ the employee for the duration of the employment relationship.
If professional employment is not possible, the employee must temporarily perform other work in the company for the same remuneration. If the employee is refused to perform such reasonable work, the employee can be dismissed;
b) the ordered or usual availability for work, in particular in the case of employees whose regular working hours are more than 39 hours per week [Section 2, point 4 c), d)];
c) absences from work for which the employee is not responsible, provided that the present collective agreement provides for the payment of remuneration.
2. Even if normal working hours are distributed differently in accordance with Section 2A, points 2 and 3 or Section 2B, wages for the average normal working hours of 39 hours are due during the calculation period.
In the case of performance-related pay systems, different arrangements can be made by company agreement or, in companies without a works council, by written individual agreement. Hourly-based components of remuneration (e.g. allowances, surcharges) are calculated based on the hours worked.
3. Employees who drive a crew transport vehicle provided by the employer outside of normal working hours for the purpose of transporting other employees to or from external work sites (construction sites) in order to perform the actual work there are entitled to a driving time allowance of € 12.17 per hour for the duration of the vehicle driving *) . The driving time is to be calculated according to the driving time during which the driver transports at least one other employee in addition to himself. In deviation from Section 5 Z 3, a flat-rate regulation is permissible for this. These times are to be taken into account when claiming daily allowance. No driving time allowance is due for times for which travel expenses are due in accordance with Section 9 Section III. The driving time allowance increases at the start of a collective wage increase by the percentage by which the collective minimum wage increases.
*) Driving time allowance is also payable for journeys from the crew quarters to the construction site and back .
4. Scheduled breaks are not considered working time, with the exception of breaks pursuant to Section 11, Paragraphs 3, 5 and 7 of the Working Hours Act (Federal Law Gazette No. 461/69 in its current version).
5. Payroll accounting and payment are usually carried out monthly. The payroll period is the calendar month. Payroll with debt-discharging effect is made into the employee's bank account.
6. All wages for the wage payment period must be paid out in such a way that these wages are available by the 15th of the month following the wage payment period. The wage slips must be given to employees in writing as soon as they are available, but no later than the 15th of the month following the wage payment period. (A change can be made by means of a works agreement within the meaning of Section 97 Paragraph 1 Number 3 of the Labor Constitution Act.)
7. If the 15th of the month falls on a Saturday or public holiday, payment will be made on the previous working day. If the 15th falls on a Sunday, payment will be made on the previous Friday.
8. The employer is obliged to give the employee an accurate statement of wages, allowances and deductions when paying wages.
9. The full or partial payment of wages in kind is not permitted.
10. Payment for overtime, Sunday, holiday and night work shall only be made if the work is carried out on the express instructions of the employer or his representative.
§ 9 Business Travel Remuneration
I. Daily allowance
1. Employees who are assigned to work on construction sites outside the permanent, fixed establishment for which they were hired are entitled to a daily allowance. Work on construction sites is in any case considered to be work outside the permanent, fixed establishment.
2. The entitlement to daily allowance exists for those days on which actual work is performed for more than 3 hours or, in the case of bad weather, on which the employee is available to work for more than 3 hours.
3. (a) The employer’s permanent place of business and the employee’s place of residence must be recorded in the employment contract or service certificate.
b) Place of residence is the municipal area of the place where the employee has his or her main residence in Austria. Foreign main residences in border districts (cross-border commuters) are treated as a main residence in Austria, provided that the employee does not have a main residence in Austria.
c) Proof of the main residence, where the employee has his actual center of life interests, is provided by the employee submitting an official confirmation. Any change to this main residence must be reported to the employer immediately. If the employee does not provide proof or if there is no main residence in Austria or in a border region, the initial reception location at the respective employer in Austria is considered the starting point.
4. If the employee starts work from the permanent, fixed place of business or from their place of residence in accordance with item 3, they are entitled to a daily allowance if the employee is deployed on construction sites outside the permanent, fixed place of business on behalf of the employer and returns to their place of residence every day. The daily allowance for working hours of more than 3 hours will be €9.30 per working day from May 1, 2022. A higher amount can be agreed by works agreement, which will replace the value set out in the collective agreement.
5. If work is carried out on construction sites on behalf of the employer outside the place of residence in accordance with item 3, where an overnight stay away from home is required and the employer issues the order for this, employees will receive a daily allowance of €26.40 per day worked.
The overnight stay is required in any case and the order for an overnight stay is deemed to have been issued if the distance between the construction site and the place of residence in accordance with item 3 is at least 100 km or if it can be proven that the journey home to the place of residence cannot reasonably be expected.
6. The daily allowance of €26.40 per working day is also payable if work is cancelled due to illness or bad weather and the employee actually spends the night away from home after the cancelled working day and can provide evidence of this overnight stay.
II. Overnight allowance
1. In the event that the employer does not provide modern accommodation, employees will receive an overnight allowance of € 14.04 per calendar day under the conditions of Section IZ 5, provided that an overnight stay away from home actually takes place and is also proven.
2. The overnight allowance will be adjusted at the start of a collective wage increase (for the first time from 1 May 2017) to the same extent as the average change in the consumer price index published by Statistics Austria compared to the previous calendar year (i.e. as of 1 May 2017 to the extent of the change in the 2015 CPI of 2016).
3. If the employee is unable to find accommodation for this amount, the actual overnight costs required will be reimbursed upon presentation of a receipt. Unnecessary additional expenditure should be avoided.
III. Travel expense reimbursement
1. Employees who are seconded by the employer from one workplace to another or for short-term work are entitled to:
a) Reimbursement of travel expenses for the one-way round trip (expenses for transport, baggage fees, necessary overnight costs).
b) Payment of travel hours at the collectively agreed hourly wage without additional payment, but not more than 9 hours per calendar day.
No remuneration shall be paid for travel times outside normal working hours up to a duration of one hour.
2. The route and means of transport to be used are specified by the employer or his representative.
3. Travel hours include the time from leaving the place of residence or work to arriving at the destination.
4. No remuneration shall be payable for working time lost due to business trips, apart from payment for travel hours and actual working hours.
IV. Travel expenses reimbursement
1. Those employees who have to report to the construction site to perform work and who live more than 3 km from the construction site shall receive travel expenses reimbursement for a single daily round trip using a means of transport at the cheapest fare.
2. The receipt of daily allowance in accordance with Section IZ 5 excludes the receipt of travel expenses reimbursement if the employer was able to provide accommodation less than 3 km from the respective construction site.
3. Travel expenses must also be paid if work was not started on a particular day due to bad weather or on the employer’s instructions and the employee appeared to start work.
4. The shortest reasonable route shall be used to calculate the distance.
5. If the employer transports the employee to and from the construction site, travel expenses will not be reimbursed for this route.
This also applies if apprentices make use of the free travel option.
6. Instead of paying the cost of public transport, a flat rate of €0.11 per km can be paid.
§ 10 Apprentices
1. Apprentices are persons who, on the basis of an apprenticeship contract, are given professional training by an authorised trainer to learn one of the apprenticeship trades and are employed in the context of this training.
2. During the first three months, both the trainer and the apprentice can terminate the apprenticeship unilaterally at any time. Otherwise, apart from a mutually agreed early termination of the apprenticeship, early termination by the trainer or the apprentice is only permitted for the reasons set out in Section 15, Paragraphs 3 and 4 or Section 15a of the Vocational Training Act (Federal Law Gazette No. 142/69) in its current version.
3. The apprentice will be remunerated for the number of hours of instruction at the commercial vocational school that fall within normal working hours upon presentation of proof of regular school attendance.
4. If there is a shortage of work at the workplace, the trainer is obliged to employ the apprentice accordingly in the company.
5. The authorized trainer with whom the apprentice completes the apprenticeship period set for the apprenticeship is obliged to continue employing the apprentice for three months in his company in the profession he has learned. If the apprentice has completed up to half of the apprenticeship period set for the apprenticeship with the authorized trainer, the obligation to continue employing the apprentice described above only applies to half of the extent. Beyond this, the authorized trainer is fully obliged to do so.
The provisions of Section 18 Paragraph 3 of the Vocational Training Act apply.
6. If the apprentice is transferred to a job outside the company, he or she is entitled to travel allowances in accordance with the collective agreement, just like other employees.
7. Payment of remuneration in the event of an apprentice’s incapacity to work due to illness shall be governed by Section 17a of the Vocational Training Act.
8. Apprentices who complete the final apprenticeship examination with good results receive a bonus of 200 euros. Apprentices who complete it with distinction receive a bonus of 250 euros.
The amendment or repeal of the directive in accordance with Section 19c Paragraph 1 Item 8 of the Vocational Training Act (as of July 2014) leads to the loss of this entitlement.
9. For the duration of their vocational school attendance, apprentices who are accommodated in a boarding school are entitled to a weekly reimbursement of the cost of travelling home using the cheapest form of public transport. If the apprentice is entitled to free travel for school pupils or a school travel allowance, the reimbursement claim is reduced by this amount. Appropriate receipts must be presented upon request from the employer."
§ 11 Miscellaneous
1. The company must provide heated, lockable rooms with sufficient seating for employees to eat, put away their clothes and store their tools. These rooms must be kept clean.
2. Provision must be made for clean drinking water and adequate washing facilities.
3. Quarters must be set up and maintained in accordance with legal and official regulations.
4. The consumption of alcoholic beverages during working hours is strictly prohibited.
5. The instructions of the employer or his representative must be followed.
6. Employees must carry out the work assigned to them with care and diligence.
7. Employees are prohibited from removing lumber, wood waste and building materials from the construction site without permission.
8. Trade union bodies that can show appropriate identification are permitted to enter the workplace at any time, but the trade union body must report to the site manager or his deputy.
Any obstruction of work must be avoided during all visits, although a discussion with a works council member or individual employees does not constitute an obstruction.
9. The allowance amounts set out in this collective agreement and the wage amounts to be set in the future shall be rounded to the nearest cent.
10. If there is no works council in the company, the relevant trade union shall take its place.
11. Each employee is paid 1 1/2 hours per year for holding a works meeting.
12. The work equipment (e.g. tools) must be provided by the employer.
§ 12 Christmas bonus
1. Employees receive a Christmas bonus after one month of employment. All periods of employment with the same employer are added together as far as the one month of employment is concerned.
2. The Christmas bonus amounts to 3.41 hourly wages for every 39 hours worked during the current calendar year. Any remaining hours are to be taken into account pro rata when calculating the amount.
Holidays in accordance with the Construction Workers' Holiday and Severance Pay Act (BUAG) and paid absences from work are to be included.
3. The Christmas bonus for employees working in December is to be paid on the first Friday in December, with the remaining parts of December counting as qualifying periods of employment.
4. Upon termination of the employment relationship, with the exception of a justified dismissal (except in accordance with Section 82 lit. h of the Trade Regulation Act, RGBl. No. 227 of 20 December 1859) or an early termination without good cause, the employee shall be entitled to payment of the Christmas bonus acquired and calculated in accordance with the preceding principles.
5. The transfer of an employee from a carpentry company to a consortium or vice versa is not considered as termination of the employment relationship for the calculation of the Christmas bonus.
§ 13 Vacation and vacation allowance
are regulated according to the provisions of the Construction Workers’ Holiday and Severance Pay Act – BUAG in the currently valid version.
§ 14 Limitation provisions
1. Complaints about discrepancies between the wages paid and the invoice must be made immediately upon receipt of the money. Later complaints cannot be accepted.
2. Claims of any kind arising from the employment relationship and complaints regarding the invoice must be submitted to the employer or his representative within 6 months of receipt of the invoice, otherwise they will be excluded.
3. After termination of the employment relationship, claims of any kind must be asserted against the employer within three months at the latest, calculated from the date of termination, otherwise they will expire. If the claim is for severance pay against the employer based on individual agreements, work regulations or works agreements that is not covered by the BUAG (additional claim compared to the statutory claim), a limitation period of three years from the termination of the employment relationship applies. If the employer rejects the claim, it expires if it is not asserted in court within three months of the rejection.
§ 15 Termination of the employment relationship
The collective agreement partners agree and expressly state that the companies subject to this collective agreement belong to an industry in which seasonal businesses predominate (seasonal industry within the meaning of Section 1159 (2) ABGB, as amended by BGBl. I 153/2017).
The following notice periods will remain in force beyond July 1, 2021, even after the new legal regulation of notice periods by Section 1159 (2) ABGB, as amended by BGBl. I 153/2017.
1. The first month of the employment relationship is considered a trial month. In the second and third months of the employment relationship, the employment relationship can only be terminated by both the employer and the employee on the last working day of a working week. After three months of employment, a notice period of one week applies, after six months of employment, a notice period of two weeks applies, after five years of employment, a notice period of three weeks applies, and after ten years of employment, a notice period of four weeks applies.
If the employer or employee terminates the employment relationship, the employment relationship can only be terminated on the last working day of a working week.
The duration of all employment relationships of an employee with the same employer are added together to determine the notice period, provided that each individual interruption does not last longer than 120 days.
2. Upon termination of the employment relationship, the employee shall receive his documents, his salary and, upon request, a certificate within a reasonable period of time, but no later than the 15th day of the month following the wage payment period.
3. The protection against dismissal under Section 15 of the Maternity Protection Act and Section 7 of the Fathers’ Leave Act is extended to the duration of the entitlement to child care allowance regulated by federal law.
§ 16 Severance Pay
1. The entitlement to and extent of severance pay shall be governed by the provisions of the Construction Workers’ Holiday and Severance Pay Act (BUAG) 1987, as amended.
2. Pursuant to Section 13 d Paragraph 4 of the BUAG, the following formula is established as the basis for calculating the pro rata Christmas bonus, which is added to the monthly salary:
| collectively agreed hourly wage x 1.2 x 3.41 x 52.18 | = pro rata |
|---|---|
| 12 |
This pro rata Christmas bonus is to be added to the respective monthly salary as often as a severance payment claim is due in the amount of the monthly salary.
In the case of part-time work, the pro rata Christmas bonus calculated according to the above formula is to be prorated according to the agreed working hours.
3. For employees in mixed establishments who are alternately assigned to jobs covered by the severance pay provisions of the Workers’ Severance Pay Act and the provisions of the BUAG, the provisions of Annex I shall apply.
§ 17 Final Provisions
1. This agreement, together with its appendices, comes into force in its current version on 1 May 2016 and is valid for an indefinite period. It is a re-announcement and supplement to the collective agreement of 1 May 1954, filed with the Conciliation Office under the number KE 113/54.
With the entry into force of this collective agreement, all existing collective agreements of the contracting parties cease to apply, with the exception
of the collective agreement of 8 March 2016 (wage supplement), the agreement on temporary work and
the collective agreement on the training of construction trades students.
It can be terminated by either contracting party by registered letter with three months' notice up to March 31 of each year. During the notice period, negotiations must be conducted to renew or amend the collective agreement.
1a. Due to the introduction of the new working time provisions in Section 2B on May 1, 2016, the first averaging period of the 52-week period according to Section 2B, Paragraph 2 can be set from January 1, 2016.
2. The wage rates may be terminated with four weeks’ notice at the end of each month.
3. Existing agreements that are more favourable to the employee will not be changed by this collective agreement.
Vienna, March 23, 2022 (Vienna, March 8, 2016)
Federal Guild of Timber Construction
Komm.Rat Siegfried Erwin Fritz
Federal Guild Master
Mag. Franz Stefan Huemer
Managing Director
Austrian Trade Union
Federation Construction – Wood Trade Union
MP Josef Muchitsch
Federal Chairman
Mag. Herbert Aufner
Federal Managing Director
Annex I
Extract from the collective agreement of 11 May 1988 concerning severance pay
Section A
For all federal guilds and professional groups whose members are subject to the Construction Workers' Holiday and Severance Pay Act, subject area of severance pay, the entitlement and extent of severance pay are governed by the provisions of the Construction Workers' Holiday and Severance Pay Act (BUAG) 1987 in the currently applicable version.
Section B
The following regulation applies to federal guilds and professional groups whose members are not subject to the Construction Workers' Holiday and Severance Pay Act, subject area of severance pay:
The entitlement to severance pay is governed by the provisions of the Workers' Severance Pay Act 1979 with the following additions:
To determine the duration of the uninterrupted employment relationship, periods of service with the same employer which do not have an interruption longer than 90 days, or 120 days from April 1, 1981, are to be added together, provided that re-employment within 90 or 120 days at the original wage conditions has been or will be assured in writing. The aforementioned written assurance is not required for creditable periods of service of less than three years.
The offset does not apply in cases where the employment relationship prior to the last interruption ended due to dismissal for negligence within the meaning of Section 82 of the German Trade Code (GewO)*, early resignation without good cause, termination by the employee or mutual agreement with waiver of the right to severance pay. Previous periods of service will not be offset if severance pay was paid during the last interruption.
Section C
For employees in mixed companies who are alternately employed in jobs that fall under the provisions of Section A and Section B, the length of service under Section A and Section B are added together for the acquisition and calculation of a severance pay entitlement under Section B - regardless of the frequency of the change and the duration of the respective activities.
If the severance pay entitlement is asserted against the employer in accordance with the first paragraph, the employee is entitled to the share of the severance pay to which he is entitled, taking into account the total duration of the employment relationship, which corresponds to the ratio of the length of service under Section B to the total length of service under Sections A and B.
If a severance pay entitlement has been acquired in accordance with the first paragraph and the employment relationship is not continued with the same employer within 120 days of the last termination or is not offset against the higher entitlement, the severance pay is due, provided that it does not exceed the amount of three times the monthly salary. The remainder can be paid in monthly installments payable in advance from the time it is due. The terms of payment as per Section 23a of the Employees Act remain unaffected. The expiry period only begins to run from the due date.
Annex II
agreement
for the area of the collective agreement community of the construction and building trades
Temporary work:
The federal guilds undertake to ensure that only employees who are in proper employment relationships are employed on the construction sites of member companies, whereby the respective labor law and social security law as well as collective agreements are to be applied.
Vienna, April 30, 1987
For the collective agreement association of the construction and construction-related trades
For the Austrian Trade Union Federation of Building and Woodworkers
Annex III
Collective agreement on the training of construction tradesmen [1]
concluded between the Federal Guilds of the Building Trade, Master Carpenters and Master Stonemasons, as well as the Trade Association of the Construction Industry on the one hand, and the Austrian Trade Union Confederation, Construction and Wood Trade Union, on the other hand.
[1] Please also note the possibility within the framework of the foreman training.
§ 1 Scope
This collective agreement covers:
a) spatially: to the territory of the Republic of Austria.
b) professional: to all companies whose owners are members of the Federal Guild of the Building Trade, of Master Carpenters, of Master Stonemasons or of the Professional Association of the Construction Industry.
c) personally: to all employees who are not employees within the meaning of the Employees Act and
who are employed in one of the establishments referred to in b).
§ 2 Continued employment with reduced remuneration, use of paid leave
Provided that a written individual agreement between employer and employee has been mutually agreed upon for the employee concerned to attend a construction trades school in accordance with Section 59 of the School Organisation Act, Federal Law Gazette 435/95, as well as to be granted holiday without paying fees for the period between December 24 and January 6, the employer agrees to continue to employ the employee for the period of school attendance at reduced pay.
§ 3 Amount of remuneration
(1) The amount of the monthly remuneration for employees employed in undertakings whose owner is a member of the Federal Guild of the Construction Industry or the Professional Association of the Construction Industry shall be as follows:
- In the 1st grade 70%
- In the 2nd grade 80%
- In the 3rd grade 90%
of the skilled worker's wage II b according to the collective agreement for the construction industry and building trade. This remuneration is increased by the percentage of the respective wage increase in the collective agreement for the construction industry and building trade.
(2) The amount of the monthly remuneration for employees employed in establishments whose owner is a member of the Federal Guild of Master Carpenters or the Federal Guild of Master Stonemasons shall be:
- In the 1st grade 70%
- In the 2nd grade 80%
- In the 3rd grade 90%
the skilled worker's wages due according to the respective collective agreement classification before attending the construction trades school. However, this remuneration may not exceed the amounts set out in paragraph 1.
This remuneration will be increased by the percentage of the respective wage increase in the collective agreement for the carpentry and stonemasonry trades.
(3) The employer shall be obliged to withhold and pay from this remuneration the employee’s share of social security contributions and taxes.
(4) The remuneration resulting from this collective agreement shall continue to be calculated and paid in the manner agreed for the employment relationship.
§ 4 Partial reimbursement to the employer
The collective agreement is only applicable if reimbursement of two thirds of the employer's wages and non-wage labor costs for the employee concerned can be claimed in the amount resulting from the decision of the Administrative Board of the Austrian Public Employment Service of 7 November 1995.
§ 5 Duration of training
The collective agreement applies to three-class construction trade schools within the meaning of Section 59 of the School Organisation Act, whose total training period extends over three years, with each class lasting 13 weeks and beginning at the beginning of December.
The parties to the collective agreement agree to work towards the necessary legal changes.
§ 6 Elimination of surcharges according to BUAG
For the periods of attendance at a construction trades school in accordance with Section 59 of the School Organisation Act, no additional payments are to be made by the employer, either directly or via the construction workers' holiday and severance pay fund. These periods only affect the higher entitlement, but not the holiday pay.
As long as there is no explicit legal implementation of these framework conditions in the BUAG, Section 4 Paragraph 3 Letter d BUAG applies.
The collective bargaining partners agree to work to ensure that a new letter g) "Periods of training at a construction trades school in accordance with Section 59 of the School Organisation Act, Federal Law Gazette No. 435/1995, in the currently valid version" is added to Section 4 Paragraph 3 BUAG as soon as possible.
§ 7 Exclusion of termination
Employees and employers may not terminate the employment relationship with legal effect during the term of a class and until three months after the end of the class.
§ 8 Christmas bonus, special payment
Periods spent attending school are not taken into account when calculating Christmas bonuses.
There is no entitlement to special reimbursements, allowances, bonuses or flat-rate overtime payments under collective agreements.
§ 9 Repayment Obligation
In the event of voluntary termination, dismissal through fault or early departure without good cause, the employee is obliged to repay part of the training costs to the employer within three years of successful completion.
This repayment obligation amounts to öS 15,000 within the first year (EUR 1,867.78 from May 1, 2016) and öS 5,000 thereafter (
EUR 622.60 from May 1, 2016).
In the event of termination of the employment relationship through voluntary termination, dismissal through fault or early departure without good
cause before completion of the construction trades school, the employee must repay
ÖS 5,000 after the 1st year (EUR 622.60 from May 1, 2016) and öS 10,000 after the 2nd year
(EUR 1,245.18 from May 1, 2016).
The amount to be repaid under this commission will be increased annually by the percentage of the respective wage increase in the collective agreement for the construction industry and construction trade.
At the time of termination of this collective agreement, any repayment obligation within the meaning of this paragraph will expire retroactively for construction trades students who have not yet completed their training.
§ 10 Effectiveness and Duration
This collective agreement shall enter into force retroactively as of 1 November 1995 and shall apply for an indefinite period of time, unless otherwise specified.
Termination may be made by either party to the contract subject to two months' notice to the end of the month.
Vienna, November 10, 1995
Federal Guild of the Construction Industry
Association of the Construction Industry
Federal Guild of Master Carpenters
Federal Guild of Master Stonemasons
Austrian Trade Union
Federation Construction - Wood Trade Union
This framework collective agreement (as of May 1, 2022) is not an authentic collective agreement text. All information is provided without guarantee, and any liability for errors in this text is excluded.