Global Job-Seekers Look Abroad While Older Americans Stay Put

A massive study suggests that 64 percent of job seekers worldwide are willing to leave their countries to work. The results challenge the stereotype that young people are more willing to move than their elders. In countries such as Russia, China, and Greece, workers under 30 say they’re less willing to move than are their older compatriots.

The study—a joint effort of the Boston Consulting Group and Network, an online recruiter—surveyed more than 200,000 people from 189 countries on a variety of subjects, including what would prompt them to move and where they would want to go. What emerges is a fascinating portrait of global mobility that offers insight into a variety of cultures and the lingering impact of the financial crisis. In Europe, for example, 94 percent of French job seekers are willing to work abroad, while only 44 percent of Germans say they would move. Germany’s strong economy and low unemployment rate may be factors keeping people at home, not to mention the dearth of opportunities in neighboring countries. France, in contrast, has seen unemployment figures rise and its economy stagnate.