A survey of foreign expats living in Denmark has revealed that expatriates find it difficult to integrate with the local population and trailing spouses find it difficult to secure suitable employment.
The Expat Study 2010, published by The Copenhagen Post yesterday, indicates that expat integration remains a significant issue for foreign workers in Denmark, with 43% of the expats surveyed rating the openness of the local Danish population as being “Lee good/not good”.
Discussing the results, Craig Till, head of the secretariat of Expat in Denmark, told the Copenhagen Post that he was not surprised by the results of the survey: “By and large they represent the feeling we get from our members,” he said. “The openness of the Danes is a big issue for them.”
The survey, which involved over 1500 participants, also revealed that language skills positively aided an individual’s ability to integrate with the local population and that those who were able to speak some of the language had a much better chance of finding suitable employment.
While every effort has been made to improve the relationships between expatriates and the local population in Denmark since the last Copenhagen survey in 2006, it is clear that more work needs to be done. Discussing the disappointing results, Charlotte Mark from the Microsoft Development Centre told the Copenhagen Post: “It makes us see that we have the right focus in what we are already doing, and also what else we need to improve.”
