Rainer Wimmer

Rainer Leopold Wimmer (born 10 August 1955) is an Austrian trade unionist, politician and former member of the National Council. A member of the Social Democratic Party, he represented Upper Austria from December 1993 to November 1994, Traunviertel from November 1994 to October 2008 and the Federal List from October 2013 to November 2017 and from October 2018 to October 2024.

Wimmer was born on 10 August 1955 in Hallstatt. He trained to be an electrician at a vocational school from 1970 to 1974. He worked as an electrician for the salt mining company Salinen Austria from 1970 to 1983. He was chairman of the works council at Salinen Austria in 1983 and chairman of its central works council from 1984 to 2010. He was appointed to the board of the Union of Agriculture, Food and Allied Industries (ANG) in 1984 and served as its chairman from 2004 to 2006. He was deputy federal chairman of the Metal-Textile-Food Union (GMTN) from 2006 to 2008. He was a member of the Federal Executive Board of the Austrian Trade Union Federation (ÖGB) from 2003 to 2023 and a member of its board from 2009 to 2023. He was federal chairman of the PRO-GE trade union from 2009 to 2023 and chairman of Social Democratic Trade Unionists (FSG) in the ÖGB from 2018 to 2023.

Wimmer was a member of the municipal council in Hallstatt from 1985 and served as its mayor from April 1988 to 1993. He was appointed to the National Council in December 1993 following the resignation of Karl Neuwirth. He was not re-elected at the 2008 legislative election but was returned to the National Council at the 2013 legislative election. He was not re-elected at the 2017 legislative election but in October 2018 he was appointed to the National Council following the resignation of Wolfgang Katzian.

Wimmer is married and has three children.