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Austria
Austria has had an educational leave system since 1998, with laws and regulations applying to the federal territory. The purpose of educational leave is to enable workers to obtain release from work for a longer period in order to attend training courses without having to give up their jobs.
Who qualifies
- All employees are entitled to educational leave after at least three years of continuous service with the same employer. The employer must agree to the time and length of the proposed educational leave.
- Paid educational leave is only available for workers covered by the Law on the Adaptation of Labour and Contract (Arbeits- und Vertragsrechtanpassungsgesetz - AVRAG). Public officials are not included in this law and public employees with a work contract (Vertragsbedienstete) may take educational leave only if the legal service provisions provide this facility in line with the AVRAG.
Educational leave can be taken for a maximum of one year. The time and duration of leave should be agreed upon by the employer.
The right to apply for educational leave, its time and the content of the desired course are exercised on a voluntary basis by employees. They have to inform their employer in advance and the employer must approve the educational leave. Proof of participation in the selected training course has to be submitted through an attestation of registration or attendance. A minimum number of hours per week is not stipulated.
The legal bases are:
Paragraph 11 of the Law on the Adaptation of Labour and Contract (Arbeits- und Vertrags-rechtsanpassungsgesetz – AVRAG), Paragraph 26 of the Law on Unemployment Insurance (Arbeitslosenversicherungsgesetz - AlVG).
Employees are covered by health and accident insurance during the period of educational leave but have no pension insurance and there is no entitlement to vacation or Christmas bonus during the period of educational leave. During educational leave, there is no protection against dismissal as there is during parental leave. Workers cannot be dismissed because they took educational leave but they can be dismissed for other reasons.
Educational leave can also be added to parental leave, but in this case protection against dismissal lapses at the end of parental leave.
Proof of participation in the selected course has to be presented through an attestation of registration or attendance. The Labour Market Service (AMS) decides whether the funding of educational leave is to be approved or not. Educational leave is funded from unemployment insurance funds, 50% of which are obtained from workers' contributions and 50% from employers' contributions.