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When you think of Italy, here’s what probably comes to mind: Venice's canalled mazes, the Amalfi coast's breathtaking ravines, Rome's grand Colosseum. It is the land of roaring Vespas, quiet strolls, fine foods, superb wines and rich gelato. It's easy to see why many people would want to live and work in Italy. But beyond this travel-brochure description is a work environment rife with contradictions.
Italy has one of the highest unemployment rates in Europe. However, most of the unemployment is concentrated in Southern Italy, where it is not at all unusual to be unemployed and living off your parents' pension. Highly industrialized areas of Northern Italy hold a great demand for both skilled and wage laborers.
Italy's work environment becomes even more complicated with respect to foreign workers. Italy has experienced an unprecedented deluge of immigration, primarily from Eastern Europe and North Africa. This abundance of immigrants has led to a certain amount of animosity toward foreigners working in Italy. However, Italy's own past as an emigrant nation and the European community's borderless ideals help to alleviate the tension.
Irene Demartini of LavoroPiù, a temporary job-placement service in Rome, contests that anyone hoping to find work in Italy, whether Italian or foreign, should have proficient knowledge of English and computer basics. Most Americans holding degrees already have these skills, but many may not be prepared for how specific prospective employers get about the employees they seek in terms of gender, age and appearance. It is common to see help-wanted signs in shop windows reading: "We are looking for a girl between the ages of 18 and 28 with a beautiful presence and a good knowledge of languages."
But don't let this deter you from finding a job in Italy. You should definitely consider these issues long and hard before committing to move, because they are elements of the culture you probably can't change. If you do choose to live and work in Italy, work is available for technology specialists and language teachers. Other opportunities include careers in tourism, art restoration and fashion design.
Technology
According to Giovanni Sangiorgi, director of marketing at JobItaly, most of Italy's job opportunities are concentrated in technology. "While there may be demand for a chef, baker, pharmacist or newspaper vendor, the jobs you find online are for people who have strong tech skills," he says.
Sangiorgi asserts that the biggest difficulty an American faces when deciding to work in technology in Italy is not the language but the salary. "The universal language of technology is infused with cognates and borrowed English words," he says. "But as a programmer in Italy, you simply won't make the same kind of money you can make in America."
Teaching English
Everyone in Italy seems to want to learn English. At certain times of year, the advertisements on the metropolitana are all for either English-language or weight-loss programs. And it is a lot easier to find work teaching English in Italy than it is to lose weight.
Private schools, which are profitable enterprises in Italy, tend to have the most openings. However, teachers are often required to use a systematic methodology, which may be counter to their own teaching styles. But more positions will likely become available in public schools as well. A study revealed that an embarrassingly high percentage of public school language instructors failed proficiency tests in the languages they instruct, so the Ministry of Education is working to recruit more native speakers of those languages.
Neither private nor public schools are likely to hire a potential teacher without an in-person meeting first. If you're considering teaching, plan on doing the bulk of your job search upon arriving in Italy.
Art and Fashion
Art restoration and fashion design are two other booming job markets in Italy. Art restoration is a highly specialized craft, but if you are willing to make the commitment, you can find excellent training programs, such as Oro e Colore, to help get you started. This school offers intensive programs in gilding and wood carving and the restoration of gilded works of art, paintings and wooden supports. Its 600- and 900-hour classes are officially recognized by the Region of Tuscany. Courses are taught entirely in Italian; Web site is in Italian and English.
Milan is one of the fashion capitals of the world, so if you want to embark on a career in fashion design, you may want to make that your first networking stop.
Online Resources
Check out Monster’s Global Gateway to see what kind of jobs are available in Italy. Other resources:
- Kata Web Lavoro: Kata Web, one of Italy's major portal sites, launched MioJob, which deals with career opportunities. Among the Italian-language site's features is a salary calculator for calculating the salary differences in cities and towns throughout Italy's 20 regions and how much you make after taxes.
- CESOP Recruitment and Career Opportunities: CESOP offers job listings and allows you to create an online CV. The organization also conducts campus recruiting sessions. In Italian with an abridged mirror site in English.
- No Profit Italia: This English- and Italian-language site features information about nonprofit and volunteer positions throughout Italy.
Interviews with Irene Demartini and Giovanni Sangiorgi were conducted in Italian and translated by Rebecca Falkoff.
