Austria suffers a shortage of labor force in certain sectors. In particular, there is a huge demand for healthcare workers with estimated 60–75 thousand vacancies that could be filled by Filipinos. In April 2023, a high-level Austrian delegation met with a representative of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), which is the executive department of the Philippine government, established in 2022 to protect the rights and promote the welfare of overseas Filipino workers.
Austrian Ambassador to the Philippines Johann Brieger stated that both countries will benefit from the mutual cooperation. The agreement will create job opportunities for Filipinos and contribute to Austrian economic growth. The Philippian side also expressed its determination to take measures to ensure that there are enough nurses and healthcare workers to serve the local population. The DMW wants to make sure that the potential outflow of workers will not undermine the local healthcare system.
According to DMW Secretary Susan Ople, both sides agreed to prepare a Memorandum of Understanding to define the parameters of the cooperation between the DMW, the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, and the Federal State of Vienna. Ms. Ople also assured that fair and ethical principles will be met during the process of hiring the workers and pointed out that both Austria and Philippines have adequate mechanisms and laws to avoid human trafficking.
According to the DMW, there are currently (in 2022) 5,824 Filipino workers in Austria, with the majority of them working in the hospitality and the food service sector (1,220) and the health and social work service sectors combined (749). If the agreement will be implemented, it would cause a significant increase of Filipinos in Austria.