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🇩🇪 Germany /Economy & Trade

Germany’s skilled-worker shortage set to worsen sharply by 2029, IW forecasts

From Der Spiegel · () German

Translated from German and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis Documents & data Context piece
  • The Institute of the German Economy forecasts that Germany’s skilled-worker shortage will worsen through 2029 if current labor-market trends continue.
  • The study attributes the expected increase partly to large numbers of people retiring and insufficient younger workers entering the workforce.
  • A possible economic recovery could further increase demand for skilled labor, while recruiting workers from abroad may become more difficult.

Germany’s shortage of skilled workers is expected to become significantly more severe by 2029, according to an analysis by the Institute of the German Economy, or IW.

Study author Alexander Burstedde linked the forecast partly to the large number of people expected to retire in the coming years. At the same time, too few younger workers are likely to enter the labor market.

The supply of workers from abroad could also become more limited. If Germany’s economy recovers, the demand for skilled employees would rise further, adding to the pressure described in the study.

The IW analysis extends labor-market trends through 2029 using data available up to the end of 2024. It also models how the shortage would develop if current trends continued. The forecast comes as the number of unemployed people has recently risen, even while many parts of Germany continue to lack skilled workers.

About this summary

Originally published by Der Spiegel in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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