Study or training? Salary also plays a role in this choice. A study now lists which training courses will bring in a lot of money later on – and what that means for the shortage of skilled workers.
According to a study by the German Economic Institute (IW), the shortage of skilled workers is also affecting apprenticeships with above-average wages. “Some employees with apprenticeships earn more than employees with a university degree,” says the IW study published at the start of apprenticeships. It lists the twenty most lucrative job categories for 20- to 39-year-olds.
The study authors also draw conclusions about the shortage of skilled workers. In some areas, such as electrical engineering, qualified employees are sought despite above-average pay. “Therefore, a wage increase alone is not a simple solution to the shortage of skilled workers,” argue the researchers at the employer-friendly institute. Instead, they suggest better advertising for apprenticeships and recruiting foreign skilled workers.
The most lucrative apprenticeships
According to the analysis, the best-paid skilled workers include those employed in technical research and development – often working in the automotive and pharmaceutical industries. The so-called gross median income for full-time employees here is 5,670 euros. The skilled workers in this sector have completed various training courses, but are particularly specialized and work as test field mechanics, for example.
Workers in the aerospace industry – such as trained aircraft mechanics – come in second place in the ranking. They earn a median salary of around 5,100 euros. They are followed by employees in the insurance and financial services sector with a median salary of just over 5,000 euros.
According to the study, most well-paid apprenticeships have a technical focus or come from the construction industry. More than half of the 20 most lucrative occupations are in the metal and electrical sectors. Across all occupational categories, the median salary for employees with completed training in 2023 was just over 3,500 euros.
The “median” divides the values examined into two groups of equal size and is less susceptible to individual particularly high values than the average. The salary of 50 percent of employees is therefore below the median, while that of the other half is above it. This mean does not take into account outliers in salaries.
Source: Stern
