Labour Agency Analysis: Where Skilled Worker Shortages Will Hit Hesse First

Hesse's labor market is already feeling the pressure of demographic change, and the shortages are appearing across more sectors than just healthcare. The Federal Employment Agency's latest analysis identifies gaps in care, support services and health, as well as technical professions, IT and the skilled trades.

The pressure will intensify when the large baby-boomer generation moves into retirement. The impact has been delayed because older workers remain employed at much higher rates than in the past. In Hesse, 53.7 percent of people aged 60 to 65 still work. In 2012, the figure was only 28.3 percent. Among those aged 55 to under 60, the employment rate has risen to 65.9 percent, from just under 53 percent 14 years ago.

“Thus, the demographic problem in many professions has merely been postponed, not solved,” said Frank Martin, head of the Federal Employment Agency's regional directorate in Hesse. He warned that the age-related departure of experienced employees could hit many companies hard in the coming years.

The agency says companies and workers will need support with further training. Knowledge transfer inside businesses will also become increasingly important. It expects the sharpest shortages in jobs requiring intermediate qualifications because younger employees are much more likely to have academic training, while many of the baby boomers they must replace completed vocational apprenticeships.

The highest shares of employees aged 55 and older are found in jobs operating heavy construction and transport equipment, at 37 percent, followed by fire, personal and property protection at 30 percent, and electrical engineering at 29 percent.

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Thus, the demographic problem in many professions has merely been postponed, not solved. Rather, there is a risk that the age-related departure of these experienced employees will hit many companies hard in the coming years.