Germans like Stefan Grisch (right) have found it easier to find work

In his smart green uniform, sous-chef Stefan Grisch looks quite at home at Hotel Schwarzbrunn in the Austrian Alps.

But his accent quickly reveals that he is not from Tirol, but the East German region of Thuringia.

"The problem is in Thuringia there are not many guests - people don't have money any more in Germany, they can't go out to eat in a hotel or spend a night there," he says.

"You can't get a job there any more so I came to Austria and it's very nice here."

Unemployment in his home town of Erfurt is over 15%, so the local job centre began to send people on training schemes to Tirol. At the height of the tourist season, unemployment there is just over 3% and the region struggles to fill jobs in the hotel industry.

Austrian attractions

Germans, who traditionally saw Austria as a cheap holiday destination, are now the third biggest group of guest workers in Austria, after Yugoslavs and Turks.

The situation has caused more than a little chagrin in Germany, and some have even given Austria the title "das bessere Deutschland" - the better Germany.

Some say that as it leads the European Union, Austria may be able to show some of Europe's more sluggish economies a thing or two.

Austria is one of the greatest beneficiaries from the EU - especially since before the European Union opened to the East a huge part of our country lay on a closed border Professor Dieter Lukesch Innsbruck University

"Austria's budget deficit's not too big, there's a good rate of growth, unemployment is still not satisfactory but much lower than in Germany, the tax burden is lower than Germany," says Dieter Lukesch, dean of the economics faculty at Innsbruck University.

"A lot of foreign companies are based here and we are also exporting our investments, especially to Central and Eastern Europe."

Those factors have led more than 10,000 foreign firms to move to Austria in the last year - more than half of them from Germany. They are attracted by Austria's high consumer spending and the lower corporate taxation - 25% in Austria compared to almost 40% in Germany.

Alexander Loew crossed the border a year ago from nearby Munich to set up a subsidiary of his firm Data Warehouse, which develops software for companies like Deutsche Post and EADS. He found the working atmosphere in Austria a breath of fresh air.

"We had one guy who was responsible for building up our complete company inside Austria," he says.

"If you want to found a company in Germany you have different people to talk to, you have different governmental organisations you have to talk to and clarify things with. The communications path in Austria is much shorter."

He thinks Germany should follow its smaller neighbour's example.

"What we can learn from Austria is to take more care of the small and mid-sized companies, which provide the most employment; to get a bit more flexibility, give people a chance to stand on their own feet, be self-confident and be a little bit more responsible for their own lives. Austria's cut off all the unneeded regulations."

Looking east

Another of Austria's selling points is its close relations with the European Union's new member states, several of which are on the territory of the former Hapsburg empire.

Alexander Loew: Germany can learn from Austria

While some other countries have seen Central and Eastern Europe as a threat, Austria has seen opportunities and has become a cheerleader for the region politically, for example, elbowing the way open for Croatia to begin negotiations to join the EU.

"Austria is small but good, we still try to do good business in Austria, but the good chances are outside Austria," says Christoph Stocker, managing director of Stasto, which deals in industrial parts for mechanical engineering firms.

The family-owned firm expanded into the Czech Republic 10 years ago, and opened another subsidiary in Poland three months ago.

"I think in the East there is a lot of need to build factories. Also companies from the West will go to the East to make their machines there, so that's a good chance for us to supply them with our products," says Mr Stocker.

Despite a high level of Euroscepticism in Austria, the country has embraced the elements of Europe that are in its interest.

"Austria is one of the greatest beneficiaries from the EU - especially since before the European Union opened to the East a huge part of our country lay on a closed border. More and more people have the experience that working with these countries brings advantages for both sides," says Professor Lukesch.

Perhaps if Austria's European neighbours can learn one thing over the next six months it is that being a bridge, not barrier, to the East can bring dividends at home.