A new report from EPFL and the University of Geneva has revealed that perceptions of immigration in Switzerland are extremely outdated. The universities found that many Swiss people view migration today in the same way as they did over 30 years ago.
To create the study, EPFL and UNIGE analysed censuses, population registers, and other databases to examine how immigration in Switzerland has been perceived from 1966 to the present day. They found that rather than moving with the times, how migration is seen by locals bears little resemblance to reality.
They found that the public perception of immigrants in Switzerland today has its roots in the 1990s, the breakup of Yugoslavia and ensuing wars in the Balkans. During this time, large numbers of predominantly Muslim people fled the region and claimed asylum in Switzerland.
These large national groups have become integral to Swiss society. According to the latest data from the Federal Statistical Office, Kosovar, North Macedonian, and Serbian nationals are among the 10 largest nationality groups in Switzerland, not to mention the large number who have applied for and received Swiss citizenship.
According to EPFL, the idea that most migrants come to the country without an education to seek asylum and eventually citizenship no longer reflects the immigration Switzerland sees today. "Most immigrants come here to pursue an education or a career opportunity, but half leave the country after five to ten years, often with a young family," EPFL lead author Mathias Lerch told Swissinfo.
Today, 60 percent of those with medium to long-term residence permits have a university degree. Of the remaining 40 percent, most have a secondary education and work in the service, healthcare and construction industries.
Rather than the philanthropic view of migration’s purpose popular from the 1990s to today, the study argued that immigration to Switzerland is an economic and social necessity. For one, there are not enough people graduating from Swiss universities to fill jobs in highly skilled industries, a phenomenon that is expected to get worse over time. There is also growing demand for lower-skilled workers, especially in service sectors.
"If Switzerland wants to ensure steady economic growth in the future, it must tap into new recruitment potential," Lerch noted. Demographic shifts will also make new migrants all the more vital, if the country wants to maintain its pension system and other forms of social security.
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