Why is unemployment rate so low in the Alpes

[minionofmidas]

Alpes ? The dark green spot covering Switzerland/Austria/Bavaria/BaWü is not exactly Alpes.

What else is it then ?

The Upper Danube Valley, plus the northern half of the Alps?

[minionofmidas]

"where fat affluent Catholics go to retire and die"? Not at all fair, of course, but certainly a better fit than "Alps" or "Protestant work ethic"...

[minionofmidas]

Not sure about Austria, but of course the reason Germany doesn't attract high-skilled migrants is because it refuses to treat such immigration as desirable. No way you could get a lifetime residency permit right away, for instance.

[minionofmidas]

Basically, unemployment figures are not comparable between countries anyways. The definitions and the factors driving them can vary too much. The same is true of unemployment figures in Germany vs some years ago, actually - way too many de-facto-unemployed people tricked off the books right now.
The comparison of South Germany vs North Germany, or of southern Spain vs northern Spain etc, remains quite valid, of course.

[minionofmidas]

It's generally better to use employment figures, since they can't be manipulated to the same extent. It has other problems though, of course.

Wouldn't help in a Germany comparison over time unless you're using some reasonable minimum hours and primary wage threshold.

[minionofmidas]

Switzerland uses migrants to absorb shocks, basically.

Lewis, I'm not sure what you mean exactly. Of course, all employment rates should be re-calculated to full-time equivalents. I guess average hours worked would be even better.

Yah, what I meant is: the trick behind Germany's massive reductions in unemployment rates is forcing unemployed people (that don't seem likely to find a real job without government help that isn't given) into miserly paid silly activities for a few hours, supplementing their income with welfare o/c.
Rather than the time-honored trick of just considering the unemployable as not looking for work at all, and therefore not unemployed. So you'd see a corresponding rise in numbers employed, if you define employed as doing any kind of paid work at all.
If you recalculate to average hours, much of the change disappears.