Skilled labor shortage particularly acute in health and social professions

Demographic change in Germany continues unabated: our society is getting older and older—one might even say it is becoming overaged. In light of this fact, the findings of the KOFA report on the skilled labor situation in health and social professions are particularly striking: The shortage of skilled workers in this sector has more than tripled in recent years, with a nationwide shortage of around 133,000 workers.

It is nothing new that Germany is suffering from a general shortage of skilled workers. Healthcare and social services professions are particularly affected: one in four of all unfilled positions is concentrated in this sector, accounting for a quarter of the overall economic shortage of skilled workers. The report shows that the situation is particularly acute for specialists with bachelor's degrees and advanced training qualifications. Seven out of ten vacancies in this area cannot be filled.

Added to this is the growing demand for skilled workers, particularly in the care sector, as the number of people in need of care continues to rise. The coronavirus pandemic has shown just how much our society depends on medical health professions that provide care. But the shortage of skilled workers is also greatest in the area where the foundations for later education and working life are laid, namely in childcare. This area is central to our labor market, as it has a decisive influence on the labor market participation of mothers and fathers. There is therefore a need for action.

Even though training programs for nurses and educators have the highest number of completed training contracts, the report states that it is important to continue to increase the attractiveness of these training programs. This is because the demand for personnel is growing faster than new skilled workers are entering the labor market. Another demand is to make it easier to switch careers into health and social professions and to enable higher qualifications so that assistants can be retrained and new skilled workers can be recruited. KOFA also advocates increased recruitment of foreign skilled workers. Last but not least, there must also be structural changes in the professions mentioned, for example in terms of the compatibility of shift work and private life.

We were also interested in the following topics:

• An article in Der Spiegel discusses the impact of the economic downturn in Germany on the unemployment rate.

• The Tagesschau reports on how training companies are trying to reach potential applicants via social media.

• For most people, their private life is more important than their working life. According to Wirtschaftswoche, more than half of employees in Germany would like to work less and would be willing to accept lower wages in return.

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