Austria: Unemployment benefits are blocked for those who refuse to be vaccinated
Unemployment benefits are blocked for those who refuse to be vaccinated
Unusual measure: Austria’s Minister of Labor Martin Kocher (ÖVP) has decided to block unemployment benefits for job seekers if they do not apply for a reasonable job because a vaccination is required there or simply not accepting an offered position.
IIn Austria, 59.6 percent of the population are currently fully vaccinated against the coronavirus – a quote that WILL NOT be enough to get the pandemic under control over the next few months. The German neighbors are also discussing the measures that can be taken to (significantly) increase the quota.
Now Austria’s Labor Minister Martin Kocher (ÖVP) has decided on an unusual measure: Loud “Default” Does he have the so-called AMS (labor market service), which the German employment agency, obliged to block job seekers from unemployment benefits, provided that they do not apply for a reasonable job because a vaccination is required there or a job they die is offered will, just therefore not accept it.
The letter with Kocher’s instructions is dated August 25th and is a response to the AMS’s request for instructions on this matter. However, the AMS does not actively inquire about the vaccination status of job seekers. Only when an employer reports why the job was refused will the unemployment benefit be blocked. An exception is when vaccination is not an option for medical reasons.
The Ministry of Labor emphasizes that the AMS will not force anyone to have a vaccination, nor has a new legal situation been created. But an application for a position cannot be rejected simply because the applicant has not been vaccinated. Employment is reasonable if the employer requires a vaccination, provided there are no verifiable health reasons against it.
In Austria 347,312 people are currently registered as unemployed with the AMS.