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What would Vienna look like without migration?

The Local Austria
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What would Vienna look like without migration?
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Foreigners living in Vienna can often be heard complaining that the city is not particularly multicultural or diverse. They might be surprised to learn then that 52 percent of the city’s residents have a migrant background.

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Researchers at the University of Vienna have explored how this diversity has played a role in shaping Vienna into the city it is today.

Among other things, they estimated that “without migration” the city would have 508 fewer Chinese restaurants, as well as 71 fewer kebab and sausage stands.

Cheap wine might also disappear if the seasonal migrant workers who are paid upwards of €2.50 an hour to pick the grapes from Vienna’s vineyards were no longer there.

Cleaning firms would theoretically be left with nearly no employees as migrants make up 93.6 percent of the industry workforce and it’s a similar picture in social care, where migrants make up 65.5 percent of workers.

Gastronomy and security and protection service would also see significant chunks of their workforce disappear “without migration”.

People with foreign backgrounds also help to keep Vienna young, by bringing the average age down to 35.5 years from 45.5, according to the researchers. Here’s the full picture in a colourful infographic produced by the university:

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