Luxembourg: shiny happy people?

*Update 22.03.2023 Luxembourg is a little less happy in the latest edition of the World Happiness Report (but still pretty good at 9 out of 48. For reference, Belgium is at number 17).*

*Update 13.03.2023 non-Luxembourg nationals, please register to vote in the June municipal elections!*

*Update 07.11.2022 we add a list of all available state aid in Luxembourg.* Luxembourg is indeed everything EPSO says about it and it does indeed have a rather pretty hanging cycle track (check out the EPSO video). It is also one of the happiest places in the world, as far as happiness can be measured[1]. So why do we keep banging on about an ‘attractivity’ (and staff retention) issue? What’s the problem?

The biggest problem is accommodation, more specifically its scarcity and price. It’s not an accident that the winners of our Wild West of teleworking competition were disproportionately from the Grand Duchy, while only 11.4% of Commission staff are based there (July 2022). The March 2022 12 Actions for Luxembourg had 2 points on this issue alone (5 and 6)[2]. While we fully endorse the 2014-15 promotional slogan: Luxembourg is indeed ‘a great place to work’ we note that this is true only once you’ve managed to find somewhere to live.

Commission staff on minimum national wage

Check out the Commission pay scales and the Luxembourg minimum wage (yes, there are Commission staff who earn very close to the minimum). We understand that the Luxembourg minimum is higher than that of other Member States, but earning close to the minimum does price many colleagues out of the rental market unless they are looking at shared accommodation or living further away, whether that is outside the city or outside the country. In Luxembourg there are house shares of 10 people (a colleague’s 2014 experience, but have things improved any?).

Landlords frequently require take-home pay to be 3 x (rent + charges) and can ask for payslips, work contracts and criminal-record checks.

Look at the state average for rentals: EUR 1146 (without charges) is the current average cost listed there for anyone wanting to live:

With normal additional charges of at least EUR 150 per month, this would require an individual to have a take-home pay of 3 x (1146 + 150) = EUR 3888. Look again at those pay scales: AST-SC 1-3 and AST1-2 will be unable to meet this threshold.  Remember also that this average flat may or may not be found on your search.

Not all landlords apply this criteria: from the Wild West of Teleworking we have the example of a Contract Agent (CA) colleague (FGII) spending >44% of take-home pay on the cheapest flat available after moving from a flat share (May 2021).

But there are state subsidies!

There is state help available, yes, both for those renting and for those wanting to ‘buy’ (note this is a emphyteutic lease: not quite home ownership as we know it). The individual above might receive an additional EUR 200 per month from the state for rent: is this likely to be enough to make a difference?

As we said before, maybe we should change the slogan ‘Luxembourg – a great place to work’ into ‘Luxembourg – where we will help you to apply for social aids because we cannot be bothered to pay you a decent salary’. Admittedly, this slogan doesn’t have the same ring to it, but at least it’s an honest statement.

Workarounds

Note that it is possible to open a bank account and register with the commune using the address of a hotel or similar: so long as you have paperwork with your name on it then generally something can be done. It is not uncommon for new colleagues to spend the first month or more in such accommodation before finding something more permanent.

If you have any more to add here, please please get in touch!

But you can live further away or across the border!

You certainly can, this is true, but play with the state average: the small drop in price for living outside the city may not compensate the high cost in travelling time. The transport infrastructure within Luxembourg is a work in progress and will be lovely once finished. Living in a different Member State may well be cheaper, but brings its own complications: it’s up to each of us to find a tolerable balance between commuting and administration time/cost and accommodation availability/price.

We link again to the parody news story Shocking discovery: hundreds of corporate juniors living in tunnel below Kirchberg.

We leave you with the very useful Tenant’s rights brochure for Luxembourg, know your rights! (Update 24.05.2023: we also add the corresponding MyIntracomm site.)

As always, we would love to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us or leave a comment below.

If you appreciate our work, please consider becoming a member of Generation 2004.

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[1] Number 8 out of 52 in the Ranking of happiness (Figure 2.1 (2018-2020), The World Happiness Report 2021, p. 20). Though we note that a disproportionate part of that measure for Luxembourg is made up of gross domestic product (GDP) and it is debatable how well GDP reflects happiness.

[2] MyIntracomm promises that ‘progress was made‘ on these 12 actions, but if you check the minutes of that meeting the declared progress is rather underwhelming.

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