If there were a ‘Highly Skilled Red Octopus’? The Case of Italian Highly Skilled Mobility at Times of Crisis

Abstract

IntroductionIn the era of globalisation, the demand for highly skilled workers has grown faster because of an increasing reliance on technological and scientific innovation. Concurrently, the population ageing, which characterizes most industrialized countries in the twenty-first century, is causing a decrease in production capacity, which is needed to improve the competitiveness of national systems in the global market (Balduzzi and Rosina, 2011). In this scenario, many industrialized countries have become competitors in what has been defined gain, namely the acquisition of highly trained, foreign-born professionals.In times of crisis, the brain gain becomes even more evident, as innovation is a crucial factor to boost growth (Isaakyan and Triandafyllidou, 2013). Although Europe as a whole is likely to remain an attractive destination for highly trained professionals, it is undeniable that some Northern European cities, as traditional poles of attraction, are more magnetic than others. However, the case of 'alternative' highly skilled mobility in Europe - such as the cases of mobility intra-Southern European countries - is particularly interesting to discuss. On the one hand, indeed, the effects of the current downturn have been particularly severe in these countries, namely Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal. On the other hand, recent studies conducted on the mobility of highly skilled Italian have begun to show that a number of talented Italians are moving to those countries. Yet, not much research has been focussed on these flows. This means that the dynamics have been poorly understood so far. Then, there is the need to understand who is actually moving and for how long. On this basis, the main purpose of this paper is to discuss critically contributions in the study of highly skilled people, using the Italian case as a reference example. In doing so, a complementary perspective will be presented, by drawing on two recent studies on Italian highly skilled mobility at times of crisis.Starting from this preliminary consideration, the first section of this paper is dedicated to discussion of the very definition of a highly skilled worker, highlighting strengths and weaknesses of common classifications. It follows a brief discussion on the most significant contributions offered by traditional literature, before moving to more recent studies made towards the end of the 1990s. Then, particular attention is paid to some of the current forms and directions of highly skilled mobility in Europe, trying to better understand the main features of this phenomenon in its current context.The second part is intended to provide a general overview of the socio-economic situation in Italy. In particular, the focus is placed on old structural weaknesses of the country to see how they have affected, and continue to affect, the mobility of human capital from Italy. Emphasizing the features of the Italian labour market today allows a better sense of the circumstances in which the phenomenon is developing.In the third and last part of the paper, a brief overview of the results of the two recent studies mentioned above will be tabled. This is intended to outline the utility of an approach which takes into account the different forms and directions of highly skilled mobility within Europe nowadays.1. Definitional problems: who are the highly skilled?Despite a growing interest in the phenomenon, particularly since the 1990s, the international scientific community has not provided a universally accepted definition of highly skilled workers so far, because of differences between countries in terms of education systems and recognition of qualifications. It is not surprising, then, than in recent years, institution such us the European Union have pointed to the standardization and mutual recognition of qualifications through the so-called Bologna Process (Milio, Lattanzi, Casadio, Crosta, Raviglione, Ricci, Scano, 2012). …