New ÖIF integration barometer: basic mood remains critical; Austrians expect knowledge of German and employment

2023-06-10 08:33:10

Survey shows living together with immigrants rated positively, especially on the labor market; Integration measures such as German courses for working people are advocated

Vienna (OTS) – On behalf of the Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF), pollster Peter Hajek surveyed 1,000 Austrian citizens aged 16 and over on the topic of integration for the current integration barometer. The aim of the survey (period: March/April 2023) is to survey social moods on current developments in general and integration in particular, and thus to provide facts and figures for integration work. The new integration barometer shows that people in the country are concerned above all about possible bottlenecks in health care and nursing services, the high tax burden and devaluation of savings deposits and the consequences of climate change. With regard to the issue of immigration, the Austrians interviewed are primarily concerned about potential conflicts between migrant groups that are being carried out in Austria and the possibility of another refugee crisis, such as that in 2015.

The current integration barometer is in the ÖIF media library available.

Central concerns of Austrians: high inflation, nursing shortages and immigration
In 2023, developments in the economy, care and migration will be key issues for Austrian women: with over 33 percent, possible bottlenecks in the health system and care are the greatest concerns, closely followed by the high tax burden in second place (32 percent). The integration of refugees and immigrants is also a key issue that comes in third place and causes concern “very often” at 29 percent. As in previous survey waves, social cohesion is viewed critically: More than half (54 percent) rated it as “rather bad” or “very bad”. In particular, a clear deterioration in cohesion was perceived in the last year (55 percent).

Integration: living together in working life rated positively by the population; in public life as challenging
With regard to the topic of immigration, Austrians are most concerned about the integration of refugees and immigrants (29% “very often”), the spread of political Islam (26% “very often), conflicts between migrant groups (24 % “very often”) and another wave of refugees like in 2015 (23% “very often”). Compared to the last wave of surveys in December 2022, in which the topics were particularly prominent, the values ​​in April 2023 have leveled off at around the level of the penultimate survey from spring 2022. Living together with refugees and immigrants continues to be perceived negatively: 61 percent each rate living with immigrants or refugees as rather or very badly, 65% rate living together with Muslims as very or rather badly. The interviewees often have a negative perception of living together, especially on public streets and squares and in residential areas. From the point of view of the population, the three greatest challenges in living together with immigrants and refugees are:

• cultural or language differences (55 percent),
• problematic attitudes towards women (55 percent) as well
• a occasionally insufficient willingness to integrate (51 percent).

In the work environment and in shops, living together with migrants and refugees is judged to be positive and successful. More than half (55 percent) state that the diverse interactions at work work very well or fairly well, and the figure is almost 49 percent when it comes to daily shopping.

Future: Austrians support the expansion of German courses for working people
More than 90 percent of those surveyed consider a good knowledge of the German language as well as the recognition of the applicable laws and ongoing employment to be central to successful integration. For this reason, three quarters (75 percent) of those surveyed are in favor of an expansion of special German courses for people who are already employed and faster recognition of qualifications acquired abroad (73 percent). More than half (64 percent) of Austrians also continue to advocate that Ukrainian expellees should be admitted to Austria; 58 percent of those surveyed also believe that Austria can handle the integration of Ukrainian displaced persons well – compared to 51 percent in December 2022. When asked about the challenges of integrating Ukrainians, 62 percent of Austrians expect difficulties in learning the language, and half expect challenges in schools and in the labor market. Nevertheless, only just under a quarter (27 percent) fear concrete crowding-out effects on the labor market due to displaced persons admitted to Austria, presumably due to the severe labor shortage.

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