Conference with audience and speaker

European Cities Conference "The City as an Employer"

26. - 27.4.2023

In the framework of the European City Conference "Employer City. Challenges and Potentials in HR" on 26 and 27 April 2023, the City of Vienna and its partners from numerous European and Austrian cities analysed the opportunities and current challenges for city administrations in the field of human resources. At the conference, participants exchanged ideas across national and city borders and benefited from the experiences and ideas of their international colleagues.

City administrations are also affected by the turbulence on the labour market and the far-reaching changes in the world of work and must strive to find the best minds and reliable employees in the global competition, because well-functioning city administrations with their diverse tasks are essential for the daily care and quality of life of the citizens.

International exchange in times of global challenges

At the opening of the conference, KR Peter Hanke, Executive City Councillor of Finance, Business, Labour, International Affairs and Vienna Public Utilities, emphasised the importance of close cooperation and the constant transfer of know-how between European cities and regions in view of the enormous changes – from demographic to technological change – and the political and economic discord on our continent.

During the subsequent panels, experts gave an overview of current developments in the labour market, where municipalities have to compete alongside many other companies, as well as employees' expectations and career plans. The advantages of municipalities as employers, such as the possibility of lifelong, varied careers in different areas, flexible working time models, a secure workplace, international internships and meaningful work, were emphasised, as were the diverse forms of modern work organisation with which municipalities can score points with interested applicants. The experts also agreed on the particularly high importance of a positive work culture for good performance and employee satisfaction.

Self-sufficient and together - best practice examples from Europe

With the presentation of the Berlin Career Bus, the "FiT - Women in Trades and Technology" programme of Wiener Linien or cooperation with universities and technical colleges, the speakers presented successful examples of their projects and programmes to address future employees, to use and develop their talents properly and to inspire and retain them in the long term for work in the service of the city's inhabitants.

The opportunity to do so in Vienna is offered by the big job fair on 23 May in the Vienna City Hall for current employees and external job seekers.

The conclusion of the two conference days was that cities can present themselves confidently on the labour market due to the diverse career opportunities they offer to employees in order to continue to ensure a high quality of life in European cities.

International Offices of the City of Vienna: Vienna's Bridge to Europe

The City of Vienna cooperates with its neighbouring cities in various fields with the aim of developing a sustainable political dialogue as well as common solutions in a networked economic area. Since 1 January 2016, the International Offices of the City of Vienna, as a company of Wien Holding, have been responsible for Vienna's international positioning as a European hub for dialogue, for "Government2Government" projects and for the City of Vienna's public relations work in Belgrade, Berlin, Budapest, Krakow, Ljubljana, Prague, Sarajevo, Sofia and Zagreb. Due to the proximity, the connections to Bratislava are maintained directly from Vienna.

Further information