Vienna’s Greens are intensifying their criticism of the city’s Social Democratic administration, warning that planned cuts to the Mindestsicherung, “Vienna’s minimum income support program”, will hit the city’s poorest residents with losses of up to 3,000 euros per year.
According to calculations shared with ORF Vienna, long-term beneficiaries stand to lose as much as 3,016 euros annually once the changes take effect. A significant portion of the impact comes from reductions to the twice yearly special payments that have long functioned as a 13th and 14th monthly salary for people relying on the city’s social safety net. Until now, recipients could receive up to 1,200 euros a year through these supplements. Under the proposed reforms, that amount is expected to be cut by half.
Advocates warn that the burden will fall especially hard on people with disabilities, chronic illnesses and elderly residents groups already living at the margins and unable to work due to long-term health conditions.
Further strain is expected as the city moves to tighten rules on housing assistance. Long-term recipients will be required to devote a larger share of their minimum support payment toward rent, reducing their eligibility for Vienna’s separate housing allowance. The Greens estimate that this change alone could result in losses of up to 151 euros per month, or roughly 1,800 euros annually. Combined with reduced special payments, the total reduction could reach nearly 3,000 euros per year for some households.
In total, nearly 13,000 Vienna residents are expected to be affected.
For many, these benefits have served as their final financial buffer, said David Ellensohn, the Greens’ spokesperson for social policy. “People with disabilities, chronic illnesses and low pensions already face higher living costs,” he told Austrian National Television. “Now the city government is cutting up to 3,016 euros a year from their support, making their lives significantly harder.”
Ellensohn urged the city to reconsider the cuts, arguing they would deepen hardship precisely among those least capable of absorbing it.
