Whether road construction, home renovation or care: nothing works without workers. But there is a lack of them. The German Chamber of Industry and Commerce presents drastic figures.
The shortage of skilled workers continues to worsen. This is the result of the current skilled worker report of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK). “Actually, everyone is affected,” said deputy DIHK general manager Achim Dercks when the report was presented on Thursday in Berlin.
More than half of the almost 22,000 companies surveyed cannot fill all vacancies because they cannot find suitable specialists. A total of 53 percent named this as a problem, after 51 percent in the previous year.
social costs
This is at the expense of society as a whole, emphasized Dercks. This is because it was accompanied by lower income from taxes and social security. He spoke of almost 30 billion euros that are not available to public budgets.
According to the DIHK, the problems with filling vacancies had increased again compared to the previous year, although many companies expected an economically difficult year and scaled back their personnel planning. “We assume that around two million jobs will remain vacant in Germany,” emphasized Dercks. “This corresponds to a lost value creation potential of almost 100 billion euros.”
Problems for the location Germany
Combined with high energy prices and the challenges of the climate-friendly restructuring of the economy, the increasing staff shortages could lead to production and services being relocated abroad, Dercks warned. “The lack of skilled workers not only puts a strain on the companies, but also jeopardizes success in important future tasks: energy transition, digitization and infrastructure expansion – for these tasks we need people with practical expertise above all.”
Germany has never been a low-wage country, but has scored points with energy security, stable prices and vocational training, says Dercks. Those benefits only slipped.
Sectors particularly affected
The shortage of staff is particularly high in industry and the construction industry, with 58 percent of companies each having problems filling positions. Producers of capital goods, for example machines and systems for the production of other goods, as well as manufacturers of cutting-edge and high technology, are badly affected. This affects important projects such as the expansion of electromobility or renewable energies.
In the service sector as a whole, 52 percent of companies report problems. According to the DIHK, 71 percent of health and social service providers report filling problems. In transport and logistics, 65 percent searched in vain for staff, which, according to Dercks, makes it difficult to deliver on time to trade and industry. In the hospitality industry, 60 percent complained about bottlenecks, fewer than in the previous year – however, according to the DIHK, offers and opening hours were reduced in many places.
According to the survey, finding personnel was particularly difficult when it came to specialists with dual vocational training – 48 percent of those surveyed reported problems here. A total of 39 percent were trainees. In general, vocational training must be better recognized and promoted, Dercks demanded.
But people who have not completed vocational training are also being sought: 31 percent of companies with problems filling vacancies cannot fill the relevant vacancies, according to the DIHK. “So there are great opportunities here for the unemployed,” said Dercks, who mentioned the cleaning and security industries, among other things.
solution ideas
It’s like climate change, said Dercks: You have to learn to live with the shortage of skilled workers, but at the same time try to alleviate it. In addition to greater digitization, bureaucratic requirements could be reduced to relieve companies.
And while female employment has increased, many are working part-time. According to the DIHK, the average weekly working time for men is 38 hours, for women 30 hours and for women part-time 20 hours. If all female part-time employees worked just two hours more per week, that would equate to 500,000 full-time jobs. “Well, there’s really something going on here,” said Dercks – but that requires better childcare facilities. “The childcare gap for under-threes is still nearly 270,000.” The employment of 60- to 64-year-olds has increased enormously, but there is still room for improvement here, too.
More than a third (35 percent) of the companies surveyed are hoping for skilled workers from abroad, a little less (31 percent) for better qualifications and placement for the unemployed. From the DIHK point of view, less complicated procedures instead of waiting times for visa appointments at German diplomatic missions abroad of sometimes one year would be central. If you want to keep foreign workers, you also need the necessary infrastructure such as apartments or schools for the children. More efforts are also needed to keep foreign students here after their studies.
Source: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
