A dispute which threatened to cripple the Austrian metal industry has finally been resolved, which means that around 165,000 workers in the industry will see a 4.2% rise in wages beginning from next month.

Unions and employers had been arguing recently after workers complained about the poor increases to an already low salary, with the final agreement being reached in a 14 hour discussion at the Federal Economy Chamber (WKO) in Vienna which ended at 4am on Tuesday morning.

According to www.austrianindependent.com “Rainer Wimmer of the PRO-GE Union explained workers currently earning little would get 5.3 per cent more as of 1 November. Metal industry staff with high incomes can expect a salary increase of just 3.8 per cent. The agreement means that the sector’s minimum wage will rise from 1,515 to 1,583 Euros.”

The report claims that companies who are doing extremely badly may be exempt from the ruling, however no in-depth details of possible exception rules have been made public.

It is also hoped that the increased spending power of the metal industry workers will be reflected as more money is ploughed into the economy.