Bižuterija, akmenys, grožis, paslaptys ir kitka, kas domina mus, moteris
2011/04/28
Nėrinukas
Italian haves and have-nots
Ciao!
.....So just in case anyone out there thought this was an egalitarian society, here's the truth according to the latest figures released by the Bank of Italy. About 45% of Italian wealth is in the hands of ten percent of Italy's families while the poorer families in this country, even when taken all together can boast only of owning ten percent of Italia Inc.
However, in comparison with the rest of the world, Italy is in a very good place, being firmly ensconced in the top ten of the world's countries in terms of pro-capita GNP.
.....So just in case anyone out there thought this was an egalitarian society, here's the truth according to the latest figures released by the Bank of Italy. About 45% of Italian wealth is in the hands of ten percent of Italy's families while the poorer families in this country, even when taken all together can boast only of owning ten percent of Italia Inc.
However, in comparison with the rest of the world, Italy is in a very good place, being firmly ensconced in the top ten of the world's countries in terms of pro-capita GNP.
In other words, 60% of Italian households are better off than 90% of the world's households. And even right here in Europe, Italian families are doing pretty well in the sense that they have fewer debts than families elsewhere. At the end of 2008, the indebtedness of the average Italian family (or household) stood at 78% of gross available income compared to 100% in France and Germany and 130% of Japan and the U.S.
Furthermore, 41% of household indebtedness represented mortgage charges. Real estate continues to represent the major form of private investment in Italy, with real estate owned by Italian households amounting to about 4,800billion euros, or an average of about 200,000 euros per family.
http://www.stranitalia.com/
Italian youth going jobless. But whose fault is it?
Ciao! Apie Italijos jaunimą ir užimtumą (atsiprašau, čia papuošaliukais, mada ir grožiu net nekvepia), bet visgi...
Italian unemplyment figures (8.7%) are currently not that bad (somewhat less than in the U.S., which in recent years has rarely been the case). But when you start to break them down it becomes apparent that the people who are really in trouble are young Italians between 16 and 30. The figures compiled in November show that currently almost 29% of young Italians are without steady jobs, a level that was has not been reached since 2004.
Indeed, this is not a new problem for Italy and other European countries a well. But it is now getting worse. The fact is that young Italians, spoiled by their families and given unrealistic expectations by relatives and policy-makers as well, have priced themselves out of the market. Or rather, they are unwilling to do many jobs that are now being filled by immigrants from Europe or from other parts of the world.
Regular household help, which is something that families consider essential (much, much more so than in the U.S.) are now almost exclusively foreign-born people - from Asia, the Caribbean and South America - at least in big Italian cities; in the smaller towns or villages there are still Italian women willing to do this kind of work (but not Italian men).
Restaurants increasingly staff their kitchens with people from Egypt and some Asian countries. More and more, the pumps at gas stations (yes, most Italian gas stations are still manned by human beings!!!) are manned by immigrants. And in construction, a growing number of workers are from Eastern Europe.
Italian unemplyment figures (8.7%) are currently not that bad (somewhat less than in the U.S., which in recent years has rarely been the case). But when you start to break them down it becomes apparent that the people who are really in trouble are young Italians between 16 and 30. The figures compiled in November show that currently almost 29% of young Italians are without steady jobs, a level that was has not been reached since 2004.
Indeed, this is not a new problem for Italy and other European countries a well. But it is now getting worse. The fact is that young Italians, spoiled by their families and given unrealistic expectations by relatives and policy-makers as well, have priced themselves out of the market. Or rather, they are unwilling to do many jobs that are now being filled by immigrants from Europe or from other parts of the world.
Regular household help, which is something that families consider essential (much, much more so than in the U.S.) are now almost exclusively foreign-born people - from Asia, the Caribbean and South America - at least in big Italian cities; in the smaller towns or villages there are still Italian women willing to do this kind of work (but not Italian men).
Restaurants increasingly staff their kitchens with people from Egypt and some Asian countries. More and more, the pumps at gas stations (yes, most Italian gas stations are still manned by human beings!!!) are manned by immigrants. And in construction, a growing number of workers are from Eastern Europe.
Here are some examples from my own daily life:
The garage where I park my car is run by an Italian but the two attendants are a Colombian and a Sri Lankan.
In the pizzeria across the street from my apartment, the pizzas are made either by an Italian or an Egyptian.
The fish stall at my favorite supermarket is manned by a terribly competent young Sri Lankan named Gayan.
My apartment in Rome is cleaned by a young Filipino man (cleans better than any woman I know).
The waiters at the tourist-oriented restaurant around the corner are all Asian, either Bangladeshi o Sri Lankans.
At the gym, one of the two locker room attendants is a Filipina woman. The cafeteria cleaners are from Eastern Europe.
A neighbour is doing extensive renovations and the two workers are an Albanian and a Rumanian.
Again at the supermarket, one of the four women running the checkout counters in Asian.
The waiters where I have my morning coffee are two Italians, on Croatian and one Spaniard.
At the boutique down the street where I just splurged on some new clothes, the person who refolds tried-on clothing and packs purchases is a 20 year old from Sri Lanka.
In the pizzeria across the street from my apartment, the pizzas are made either by an Italian or an Egyptian.
The fish stall at my favorite supermarket is manned by a terribly competent young Sri Lankan named Gayan.
My apartment in Rome is cleaned by a young Filipino man (cleans better than any woman I know).
The waiters at the tourist-oriented restaurant around the corner are all Asian, either Bangladeshi o Sri Lankans.
At the gym, one of the two locker room attendants is a Filipina woman. The cafeteria cleaners are from Eastern Europe.
A neighbour is doing extensive renovations and the two workers are an Albanian and a Rumanian.
Again at the supermarket, one of the four women running the checkout counters in Asian.
The waiters where I have my morning coffee are two Italians, on Croatian and one Spaniard.
At the boutique down the street where I just splurged on some new clothes, the person who refolds tried-on clothing and packs purchases is a 20 year old from Sri Lanka.
Get the idea? Many young Italians don't want to do these jobs because they believed their country had better things to offer them and, unfortunately, it doesn't.
Not, at least, at the moment.
Not, at least, at the moment.
http://www.stranitalia.com
2011/04/27
2011/04/25
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