Beschreibung
The phenomenon of overqualification (here defined as exercising a job that requires a lower qualification than the level of the highest degree obtained) is particularly widespread among migrants. In popular discourse and in scholarly literature, difficulties to master the destination-country language are often seen as a main factor explaining migrants’ downward professional mobility – and sometimes even presented as a legitimate penalty on the labour market.Our paper scrutinzes this often unquestioned assumption and explores how migrants in Austria who have not acquired German as their L1 experience the importance of language skills (foremost German language skills) in dequalification processes. To what extent do they perceive knowledge of the
German language as relevant for their everyday professional life? What requirements do they experience in this regard when applying for jobs and in everyday working life? What challenges do they face? Which registers and varieties do they consider particularly important? The analyses presented are based on empirical data collected as part of a current research project (DEMICO, for more information see demico.univie.ac.at). The project investigates dequalification processes of EU citizens in Vienna. Within the framework of a qualitative panel, highly qualified migrants from CEE countries (Central and Eastern Europe) are interviewed about their experiences in the labour market and at work. Our results indicate German language skills often play an important role in informal situations in everyday working life and fulfil not only an intermediary but also a social function – it is thus sometimes more about inclusion and exclusion than about passing on information. Often, very subtle (linguistic) differences make access to professional positions and opportunities for promotion more difficult. We thus argue that language issues transcend communication problems as linguistic discrimination may limit migrants’ access to certain jobs even though their proficiency or accent does not impair understanding or good performance in the actual job environment.
| Zeitraum | 8 Sept. 2023 |
|---|---|
| Ereignistitel | Approaches to Migration, Language and Identity 2023 |
| Veranstaltungstyp | Konferenz |
| Ort | Zürich, SchweizAuf Karte anzeigen |