BIBB Data Report 2023: Skilled Worker Shortage and Updates on Vocational Training in Germany

10. May 2023

The Federal Institute for Vocational Training (BIBB) has published its 2023 data report. It contains information and analyzes on the development of vocational training in Germany and supplements the Federal Government’s vocational training report. This was approved today by the Federal Cabinet and published by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). “Positive developments on the training market must not hide the fact that we are heading towards a massive problem with skilled workers,” warns BIBB President Friedrich Hubert Esser.

“It is therefore essential to attract more young people to dual vocational training, which must become more attractive through a higher degree of flexibility, inclusivity and excellence,” explains Esser. “This requires, among other things, more social recognition of the equivalence of professional and academic education as well as integrated, continuous training and further education occupations that enable a career path from training to self-employment.” It is just as important to pick up people who have difficulties entering training or who have not received any training after school, where they stand with their learning requirements – and to get them on the way to training with low-threshold access.

Esser sees further potential in immigration and in those who want to change their job, give up their studies or want to overcome their long-term unemployment. “In order to open up these for the labor market, an infrastructure is needed in which existing professional skills can be measured, evaluated and made compatible,” said the BIBB President.

Supply and demand still below pre-Corona levels

As the BIBB data report shows, from the point of view of young people, the training market situation continued to ease in 2022, but supply and demand remained well below the level of 2019 before Corona. In addition, it is becoming increasingly difficult for companies to fill the training positions they offer.

The number of young people requesting dual vocational training fell by 5,300 (-1.0 percent) to 535,500 in 2022 compared to the previous year. Compared to 2019, there was a decrease of 63,200 (-10.6 percent). Demand thus reached a new low since 1992, when data for reunified Germany first became available.

After declining in the first year of the pandemic, the training offer developed positively for the second time in a row to 544,000 offers (+1.4 percent compared to 2021). Here, too, the value from 2019 has not yet been reached again (-5.9 percent).

At 68,900, the number of reported vacant vocational training places is a new negative record (+9.0 percent compared to 2021, +29.6 percent compared to 2019). For the first time, it was higher than the number of applicants who were still looking for a training position (60,400). In addition, the proportion of young adults aged 20 to 34 without a vocational qualification rose from 15.5 percent in 2020 (2.33 million people) to 17.8 percent in 2021 (2.64 million people). It should be noted that all figures are average values ​​for Germany as a whole, there are significant differences between professions and regions.

Further information

The BIBB data report can be downloaded as a preliminary version in PDF format at www.bibb.de/datenreport-2023 be downloaded for free. The print version is expected to be available in August. The main topic of this year’s BIBB data report is “Innovations in vocational training through programs”.

The federal government’s vocational training report is available on the BMBF’s website at www.bmbf.de/berufsbildungsbericht available.