Going to London to brush plates is becoming a hot job for young Italians. Data shows that 150,000 young people in Italy go abroad to do similar jobs every year.
Data from the Italian National Statistics Office (Istat) shows that more than 80,000 Italians left their country in 2016 alone, and one-third of them have a university diploma. In recent years, the number of people has continued to increase, with an average of 150,000 young people leaving Italy to make a living abroad every year. According to the Italian Idos Research Center, this number will reach 300,000 in the future.
Half of the young Italians who go abroad to make a living are engaged in work as workers or dishwashers. Professor of sociology at the University of Milan, Italy and expert on the Ismu Foundation, Maurizio Ambrosini, said: "Immigration's social status in new environments has always declined. For example, in Italy, many of the Egyptians who make pizza in restaurants are university graduates. When abroad, people usually have to accept jobs that do not meet their educational level, because these professions are more suitable for starting a career."
Ambrosini also said: "Italian college graduates go to London to work as bar waiters, share bars with others in crowded rooms; or go to Australian ports to work as porters, and this job can only guarantee that they stay here for a year. This will not happen in Italy. With the accumulation of experience, they expect to find a better job. Almost 150,000 Italian young people choose this path every year. The salary may be higher than in Italy, especially in the UK, but the cost of living is also high. Therefore, the only advantage is that they have mastered a new language and have the possibility of starting a business. This cannot be ignored, because the possibility of starting a business in Italy is almost zero."
The famous Naples pizza master Gino Sorbillo has opened several stores around the world, including in New York and Miami, which is about to open a store. He also affirmed this phenomenon, "The Italians only brush dishes abroad. If an Italian swipes in his own city, he will feel embarrassed. But if you swipe dishes in London, you are trendy, and I really don't understand this. However, I started with the humble profession. I first cleaned up the tables and stood on the bar. And I have to overcome making myself not homesick. Now I will send my employees to Milan first. If he can hold on, I will consider letting him go to New York.
