4,900 skilled workers received their master craftsman and qualification certificates this year

The master craftsman and qualification exams are still in demand in Austria: 4891 certificates were issued in 2022. That is significantly fewer than in 2021 (5,500 certificates), but more than in the years before the pandemic (an average of 4,300 annually). Most of the master craftsman or qualification exams were taken in the hospitality industry, followed by insurance brokerage and automotive technology. 29 percent of the exams are in Tyrol, followed by Vorarlberg (19 percent) and Upper Austria (15 percent). Master craftsmen and women are qualified to run a business and train apprentices. In 2022, 1945 people successfully passed the master craftsman’s examination.

For a large number of other regulated trades, a qualification test is provided for access to the trade: This form of qualification acquisition was successfully completed 2946 times. These figures were given in a release from the Department of Labor this week.

Equal to the bachelor’s degree

Economics and Labor Minister Martin Kocher spoke of an important impetus for Austria as a business location. “The master craftsman and qualified qualification paves the way to self-employment and has a positive effect on income,” said Mariana Kühnel, Deputy Secretary General of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce.

Since 2018, the master’s examination has been at qualification level VI of the national qualification framework and is equivalent to the bachelor’s degree. In Upper Austria, everyone who successfully completes a master craftsperson, qualification or specialist examination has received a 1000 euro bonus since 2020. This was extended for 2023.