The lack of suitable staff remains one of the main problems of companies in Germany.
According to a study by the Institute for Labor Market and Vocational Research (IAB), 84 percent of companies in Germany are currently affected by the shortage of skilled workers. “The shortage of skilled workers remains the most common problem across industry borders,” said IAB researcher Michael Oberfichtner. According to the IAB operating panel, further stressful factors are high wage costs and high absenteeism.
Two out of three companies therefore doubt that they can win sufficiently qualified workers in the future. In the construction industry, these concerns are particularly strong: only a quarter do not expect problems here.
Further training offers, personnel development and a better reconciliation of family and work see about half of the companies as suitable measures against the shortage of skilled workers.
On the other hand, five percent of the 15,000 companies surveyed await an excessive staff – especially in industry: “The weak foreign trade and the energy transition are particularly affected by the processing of the trade,” said IAB researcher Ute Leber.
Last year, 55 percent of the companies also felt burdened by high wage costs – an increase in twelve percentage points compared to 2022.