Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner spoke out in favor of increasing pay for civilian service members on the Ö1 midday journal. The Greens criticize the initiative as contradictory to the Bundesheer's personnel offensive.
Vienna, 13 August 2026
Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner raised the idea of better pay for civilian service members on the Ö1 midday journal and is drawing criticism from the opposition for it.
On the Ö1 midday journal, Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner spoke out in favor of raising the financial compensation for persons performing civilian service. She pointed to the general shortage of personnel and the need to make the service more attractive.
Currently, civilian service members receive a monthly expense allowance whose amount has been the subject of controversy for years, according to consistent reports. Tanner did not mention a specific sum or a timetable for an increase.
Tanner has headed the defense ministry for years and is a central figure in the governing ÖVP party. Her statements on military and civilian service policy have repeatedly sparked debates about the future design of both forms of service.
The opposition's reaction was not long in coming. David Stögmüller turned directly against the logic of the initiative.
Stögmüller said verbatim: „Das Bundesheer attraktiver zu machen, indem man gleichzeitig den Zivildienst unattraktiver macht, kann nicht die Antwort auf die Personalprobleme des Heeres sein."
From the Greens' perspective, the federal government is thus setting the wrong incentives: those who on the one hand want to strengthen the military in terms of personnel cannot at the same time reduce the alternative service for young men.
The backdrop is the years-long ongoing debate over the personnel situation of the Bundesheer. Reports repeatedly point to difficulties in recruiting sufficient numbers of basic military service members and those willing to extend their service.
Civilian service members perform their service predominantly in social, care, and disaster relief institutions. An upgrading of this activity has long been demanded by welfare organizations, as many facilities depend on the workforce.
Representatives of the FPÖ, who also picked up on the initiative, view the increase rather skeptically and emphasize equal treatment of all forms of service. An official statement from the Defense Ministry on the concrete plans was not initially available.
It initially remained unclear whether the suggestion should result in a concrete legislative initiative. Observers expect the issue to be discussed further in the parliamentary defense committee.
