The OECD’s Risks that Matter (RTM) Survey has offered data-driven insights into people’s risk perceptions and preferences for social protection since 2018. Today, Austrians are less worried than the OECD average about all social and economic risks – from health to education to employment to violence. Concern is highest for accessing healthcare and becoming ill or disabled.
As technology changes labour markets, respondents in Austria are less likely than the OECD average to believe that technology will negatively impact their jobs (Figure 1). Reflecting lower levels of concern, Austrian respondents tend to be less supportive of most related policy actions (Figure 2). Re-training opportunities, digital infrastructure and skilled immigration are the only three measures for which respondents in Austria express similar or higher levels of support than the OECD average.
Longer life expectancy and declining fertility contribute to population ageing, with negative implications for economic growth and the financing of social protection. Austrian respondents express a similar level of concern about population ageing as the OECD average, but tend to be less supportive of policy action (Figure 3), with one notable exception: encouraging part-time workers to transition to full-time hours. This difference may reflect that part-time rates for women are higher in Austria than in other OECD countries.
Population ageing and competing demands for resources are narrowing the fiscal space for social programmes. These changes are taking place against a backdrop of high levels of debt, a high-interest rate environment, and declining public willingness to pay for social protection. In Austria, willingness to pay 2% more for better social protection has declined since the pandemic for all policy areas except public safety (Figure 4). Declines have been largest for pensions, long-term care and disability/incapacity supports.
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