Happy Holidays!
A note of appreciation to my subscribers
Servus!
Before I get to the news of the week, a quick thank you for reading and subscribing to The Vienna Briefing. When I began writing this newsletter a little over two years ago, I couldn’t have imagined it would find a community of readers so engaged by Austrian politics and culture. Thank you, too, to those who have shared this newsletter with friends, students, and colleagues. Your personal recommendations make a tremendous difference, and if you know someone who might be interested in reading The Vienna Briefing, consider sending it along to them today.
Earlier this year, I created the option of buying me a coffee in order to support my work. This newsletter began life free and accessible to all, and I want to thank all those who have helped it remain that way via your tips—especially in these challenging economic times. Every little helps. If you’ve enjoyed reading The Vienna Briefing over the course of the past year, perhaps you’d like to send me a holiday gift today.
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Happy holidays and a happy New Year, and I’ll see you all in 2023 with the next edition of The Vienna Briefing! And now onto the news…
Frohes Fest! und bis bald!
Last week, I wrote an op-ed for the Standard about expat experiences of living in Vienna based on the most recent Internations Expat City Ranking survey, which deemed the Austrian capital the least-friendly city in the world. In the piece, I wrote about the ways in which the city’s immigration services could be improved from empowering its new call center to making it easier to access vouchers for German language classes.
Europe Gas Cap
Europe’s energy ministers have agreed a continent-wide cap on the wholesale price of gas at €180 per megawatt hour. Austria’s Leonere Gewessler abstained from voting on Monday, arguing the cap could have an impact on Europe’s ability to procure gas at a time when it is trying to wean itself off supplies from Russia.
Self-Investigation
The public broadcaster ORF has launched an investigation into the work of its regional news studio director in Lower Austria. According to reports, Robert Ziegler sought to provide favorable coverage to the state branch of the People’s Party (ÖVP) and its leader, Johanna Mikl-Leitner.
Nurses Get Pay Boost
Employees of Vienna’s state-run hospitals will receive pay increases of between 8.4 and 11.2 percent as of March 1. These are the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement ironed out between unions and management on Saturday.
New Burg Director
The Burgtheater will have a new director beginning in 2024/25 after its current head Martin Kušej withdrew his candidacy to remain in office. Kušej, who took over in 2019/20, led the theater through the COVID-19 pandemic but was criticized for his leadership style and lack of artistic innovation.
Bernhard’s Back
Austria’s national library has bought the writer Thomas Bernhard’s papers for €2.1 million. His archive runs to some 30,000 pages, among them 150 unpublished works. Bernhard died in 1989, and since then his papers have been managed by his half-brother, Peter Fabjan.
The Vienna Briefing will return on January 4