Pressure to Save at ORF: Moderate Salary Agreement and Zero Pay Increase for Top Earners

The election of Heinz Lederer as ORF Foundation Council Chairman and Gregor Schütze as Deputy, which took place in June, was confirmed on Thursday in a meeting of the highest ORF body. The step was taken to ensure legal security. Meanwhile, ORF management and the works council have agreed on a salary settlement. The increase amounts to 1.85 percent in 2026 and 1.4 percent in 2027. Top earners are excluded, for whom there will be a zero salary round.

Confirmations as a Precautionary Measure

The ORF Foundation Council wants to confirm all decisions already made in the current period as a precautionary measure. The background is that during the election of representatives from the ORF Audience Council for the ORF Foundation Council, two people voted who later resigned their mandate due to suspicion of incompatibility. They were or are active in ÖVP sub-organizations. According to the ORF law, persons with political functions are not allowed to take a seat in the ORF bodies.

FPÖ Motion for New Election Rejected

The confirmation of Lederer and Schütze took place with two dissenting votes from Peter Westenthaler and Christoph Urtz - both sent by the FPÖ. A motion by Westenthaler for a new election by secret ballot was not allowed by Lederer, citing the ORF law and the rules of procedure. Westenthaler then spoke of conditions like in North Korea, because "this has nothing to do with democracy".

Zero Salary Round for Top Earners at ORF

The Foundation Council also approved the salary settlement negotiated by management and the works council for two years. According to a letter from the central works council, in addition to the salary increases of 1.85 percent (2026) and 1.4 percent (2027), one-time payments of 400 euros (2025 and 2026) have also been agreed upon.

However, top earners will miss out. The top two salary levels 17 and 18, as well as all persons who earn more than 170,000 euros gross per year including allowances and thus appear on the legally required, annually published transparency list, are to be excluded from the salary increase.

The central works council sees the agreement as "another contribution by the workforce to the preservation of our company" after "many years of saving and cutting back." However, it represents a "noticeable burden." Nevertheless, it is a relatively balanced package that does not upset the social structure within the company and secures jobs in the long term. "The ORF, with its highly privileged form of financing, has the task of proceeding with salary agreements with moderation," said Gregor Schütze, the ORF foundation council member sent by the ÖVP, recently.

Pressure to Save at ORF

In general, for the thousands of ORF employees, there have always been extremely moderate salary agreements in recent years compared to other industries. They have been below the inflation rate for the fourth consecutive time, said ORF chief Roland Weißmann following the foundation council meeting and thanked the employees. The fact that top salaries are not being increased is an "important signal."

The low salary agreements also result from the pressure to save that weighs on the ORF. By 2026, around 100 million must be saved to achieve the planned balanced budget. Apart from the low salary agreements, negotiations with suppliers are "extremely tough," according to Weißmann. Some programs are also being discontinued - "ORF Topos" is known to be among them. Additionally, 50 employees will be "permanently reduced" as they will not be replaced.

Foundation council chairman Lederer wants to "analyze the tough savings measures closely." A "brain drain" must be avoided, and young colleagues should be able to continue developing.

ORF ON and Live Offers to be Further Expanded

The need for savings will continue at least until 2029, as the legislator has frozen the ORF contribution until then. "We are saving, but the audience does not notice it," said Weißmann, referring to "top ratings" on TV and radio. Nevertheless, there is still room for improvement. The number one position of ORF ON must be further expanded by producing more products for the streaming platform, said Weißmann. In linear TV, the focus is on live events, with several sports rights deals to be announced in a few weeks. In 2027, "Dancing Stars" will return to the entertainment lineup.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.