Who Will Re-build Greece’s Economy?
A third of job searches are for positions outside Greece as the country’s talent looks elsewhere.
The damage done in Greece over the past few years is so extensive it is hard to quantify. One of the most troublesome developments when thinking of recovery is the rapidly growing shortage of people to do the job.
A recent study of job search data for Greek users in the first half of July shows 32% of searches were for jobs outside Greece. This is almost twice the share in the comparative period a year earlier and over three times the global average.
Out of 21 broad employment categories, over 50% of job searches were for outside the country in eight categories, compared to three a year ago.
Even more troubling is the type of workers looking outside: educators, architects, computer scientists and similar highly skilled workers.
The top destinations for Greece-based job searches abroad are the UK, the U.S., and Germany.
These statistics are contained in a detailed overview of the Greek search situation in ere media, an online recruiting authority. The link is below.
With the loss of such highly educated people, the huge challenge of reconstruction at a time of punitive austerity measures presents a bleak outlook. And near-term relief is hard to see, with a vote of non-confidence looming over the government and illustrating how hard it will be to have cohesive corrective action.
And then there is the issue of when, if at all, whether those now looking outside will come back.
Consider computer and engineering. There is a strong demand for these skills across the globe, so workers in these groups, once they start looking abroad, are likely to find opportunities to leave Greece. And once settled, it may be a long time before the opportunity to return home attracts them.