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By Cornelia Ritzer
Vienna: many are looking forward to this relaxation: tomorrow, bars and restaurants will open in Austria. Eating again or drinking a glass is possible again, under strict conditions. Last week it was announced what the new rules of conduct looked like: minimum distance, mask requirement, curfew at 11 p.m. and maximum number of people at a table, but until yesterday the legal text was missing. “This causes a lot of resentment in the industry,” criticized Kurt Egger, secretary general of the ÖVP-Wirtschaftsbund (WB).
Yesterday, the regulation was published one day late. World Bank Secretary General Egger explained the anger: “Our entrepreneurs have to prepare for new measures and cannot implement the necessary protective measures from one day to the next.” According to the ÖVP business association, the hotel industry, which is allowed to open two weeks later, is also unclear: “Whether sauna areas or pools can be used is as unclear as the rules of conduct for guests.”
We want to give gastronomy a boost and encourage Viennese to visit their inns.
Michael Ludwig (Mayor of Vienna, SPÖ)
The federal government is supporting managers with a € 500 million package that includes tax and bureaucratic relief. Finance Minister Gernot Blümel (ÖVP) rejected the charge that the lower value-added tax on non-alcoholic beverages benefits the larger ones in particular. Small businesses would also benefit from the flat rate option.
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Vienna wants to provide additional support for the catering industry, which has been affected by the Corona crisis. Mayor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) said they wanted to give the restaurant a “boost” and encourage Viennese to visit “its” cafes, bars and taverns with vouchers of 25 to 50 euros. The city will cost the campaign 40 million euros in the election year. Vienna Chamber of Commerce President Walter Ruck views the coupons, which do not apply to alcohol, as “stimulants” to restart factories that have been closed for two months.
Michael Ludwig
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Many restaurants are reserved for the weekend, reports Mario Pulker, president of the gastronomy association at the Chamber of Commerce. However, there is uncertainty about how the business will develop. Pulker expects about 10 percent of companies will not open on May 15. There are around 41,200 delivery inns, ice cream parlors, cafes and kitchens in Austria, and the trend is slowing. The most recent sales revenue was 9,400 million euros. Personnel expenses amounted to around 3,200 million euros. According to data from the Chamber of Commerce, a company has an average of 7.3 employees.
