Immigrants are a big help to Greece’s economy. One of the immediate positive consequences is that they boost the income of Greece’s insurance system as long as they work legally. According to official data, immigrants are 10 % of Greece’s workforce. 82% of these people are between 20-49 years old, so they add income to Greece’s insurance system and they do not get pensions for now, affecting in a positive way its balance.
However, there is also a very big number of immigrants who work illegally without any contribution to the insurance system. If these people start working legally the contribution of Greece’s immigrants to the insurance system will be even greater. Here, at Immigrants Support Organization (OYM), we have helped in the past and we continue to help hundreds of people that wish to get all the required documents to start working legally in Greece.
Analysts insist that immigrants need to learn the Greek language at a higher level and also participate in programs for technical specialization. What is more, their higher number of children per family compared to the Greek family also has positive effect on Greece’s population and economy.
Germany set the example some years ago. The Institute of Global Economy in Hamburg decided that Germany’s birthrate is very low (the lowest in the world) and there was the fear of causing big problems to its pension system. That is why during 2015 Germany welcomed a very big number of immigrants, proving that these people are a big help and not a problem for the welcoming country!