The ongoing Omikron wave is causing problems for the German economy. According to a cross-industry survey by the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), there are signs of personnel bottlenecks in various sectors up to mid-February. According to this, every fourth company out of 370 companies surveyed rated their current staff shortages as “considerable”. Another four percent classify their understaffing as “critical” for the maintenance of their offers. The companies expect that the development will worsen in the next few days. The “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” had previously reported.
The biggest problems due to staff shortages are reported by companies in the health care and transport and logistics sectors. So far, retail and wholesale have been less affected than the average. “Companies estimate the consequences of staff shortages at suppliers or other business partners to be even more serious,” said DIHK President Peter Adrian, referring to the lightning survey.
According to the information, 31 percent of the companies in the healthcare sector report “significant” and a further 16 percent “critical, comprehensive” effects on their services, with a slight upward trend. In transport and logistics, 36 percent currently and 44 percent in the future see significant effects.
“February will be a big challenge for companies,” said Adrian. “But it shows how important it is that politicians have not made a distinction between particularly elementary and supposedly less important companies when it comes to the corona rules on isolation and quarantine.” (dpa)