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For many locals, life in Italy is anything but «Dolce Vita». A young couple talks about the difficulties.
«Viva L’Italia» by Francesco de Gregori. 1979. An evergreen reminiscent of parasols, sunscreen and sun holidays in Bel-Paese. But if you listen to the lyrics carefully, it’s about a divided Italy – half garden, half prison. An Italy that works, falls in love and despairs of itself.
43 years later, it’s still the same Italy. A young couple from the vibrant north-east of the country can desperately illustrate Italy with their own example. Giacomo and Chiara, 38 and 37 years old.
Legend:
She is a translator, a trained journalist, speaks six languages, including Arabic, and works as a freelance journalist for a renowned business newspaper. He is a lawyer and economist. Just got a degree in history and has his own consulting firm.
imago images/Florian Gaertner (icon image)
The couple recently bought an apartment for around 38,000 euros. The ancillary costs for the notary, broker, surveyor and all the bureaucracy amounted to between 10,000 and 12,000 euros. 30 percent of the purchase price came on top. That’s a lot in a country where the net average wage is around 1700 euros. But for Giacomo and Chiara there was no alternative: there is only one notary in the community.
Industry bureaucracy
Giacomo says bureaucracy is one of the most important economic sectors in Italy alongside tourism. As a matter of fact. In Switzerland there are 5182 federal laws. In Italy 110,000. Italy is not a constitutional state, but a state of legal uncertainty, says Giacomo. If you ask a lawyer for advice, he will answer with almost 100 percent certainty: “I don’t know”.
Actually ideal for a lawyer like Giacomo. But only actually. You also have to come from the right family, he says. Giacomo was born and raised in northern Italy, but his family is from the south. You can hear that. “You’re not one of us,” he even gets to hear at the bakery, “your parents weren’t born here.”
Legend:
Inherited professions: “Avvocato such and such” is written on a company sign, next to it is “Notaio such and such”. Obviously father and son. In every city, everywhere, such company signs can be seen.
Getty Images (icon image)
A stranger in your own country, says Giacomo. His wife Chiara says from her own experience: “When I apply, I have the feeling that the doors are closed. You have to have the right key to get a job.” This key has nothing to do with qualification. “What matters is: Who do you know, where do you come from.”
When I apply, I feel like I’m standing in front of closed doors.
That sounds like a class society of the Middle Ages. In the mobility index of the World Economic Forum, Italy is ranked 34th out of 82. Social mobility is low, as are wages.
High costs for an apartment and little income despite a good education. No permanent job, just freelance work. This is one of the reasons why Chiara and Giacomo put off the question of having children. Not just them: Italy has the third oldest population in the world.
A permanent job is crucial in Italy, almost a myth, says Giacomo. Without a permanent job there is no home, without a home there is no family of your own. For parents in particular, it is an obsession that their children have a permanent job.
Legend:
A permanent position, regardless of the price. With absurd consequences. Chiara’s parents didn’t like her job as a freelance journalist, even though she worked for a big-name newspaper. And therefore recommended her a job as a waitress. The main thing is that you have a steady job, they said.
Keystone/Gaetan Bally (icon image)
Italy is a country where parents recommend to their children: accept things as they are. Even if they don’t work, Giacomo adds. Why is this accepted? Because those who didn’t like it emigrated. That reduces the social pressure in Italy’s pressure cooker. The country’s political stability is based on the good and active leaving and the tired and corrupt staying, says Giacomo.
And then there are a few like Giacomo and Chiara. They stay because they want to make Italy better. But it is not surprising that many in Italy do not have great expectations of the upcoming elections and do not want to vote.