Skilled Trades Day: Staffing problems in the skilled trades lead to falling employment

Over the past ten years, it has taken increasingly longer for skilled trades businesses to fill vacant positions. One indication of this is the vacancy period for these positions, which has risen steadily and remains consistently higher than that for all registered jobs overall. The trend in the number of employees subject to social insurance contributions in skilled trades confirms this situation. On the occasion of the Skilled Trades Day, the BA takes a closer look at the data.

10 Sep 2025 | Press release no.37

Vacancy period reveals staffing problems for advertised positions

Data from the Federal Employment Agency (BA) shows that it is becoming increasingly challenging for companies to fill vacancies in skilled trades. The duration from the earliest possible filling date to the deregistration of a vacancy with employment agencies and job centres (average vacancy period) clearly illustrates this. It rose for skilled trades jobs from 104 days in 2015 to 224 days in 2024. By way of comparison: The vacancy period for all registered positions rose from 84 to 160 days during the same period. This means that it has risen by 120 days in ten years, while the increase for all positions is only 86 days. Not only do companies with skilled trades take longer to fill vacancies, but the increase in vacancy time is also greater than for all occupations as a whole. At the same time, there is a significant shortage of skilled workers in the skilled trades. Forty skilled occupations typically found in the skilled trades sector are currently affected by a shortage of skilled workers. The staffing problems are therefore also linked to the shortage of skilled workers.

Employment subject to social insurance contributions in skilled trades is declining – contrary to the overall trend

The number of employees subject to social insurance contributions in a skilled trade profession underpins this finding. This is because employment subject to social insurance contributions in Germany has been growing steadily for years, from 30.7 million in June 2015 to around 34.8 million in June 2024. This corresponds to an increase of 13 per cent. During the same period, employment subject to social insurance contributions in the skilled trades fell by 110,000 employees from 3.5 million to 3.4 million. This corresponds to a decrease of around 3 per cent.
There may be many reasons for this development: the shortage of skilled workers in certain professions, as already described, automation, or a lack of qualifications among applicants could all be contributing factors. At least when it comes to finding applicants and providing further training for applicants who are not yet quite qualified, local employment agencies and job centres can provide support.

The employer services provided by employment agencies and job centres support and advise companies in their search for suitable personnel. They also help with questions relating to qualifications and further training, as well as obtaining a vocational qualification. Companies can contact the local employer service via the toll-free number: 0800 4 55 55 20 or on our Employer Service website (available in German).

Wichtig:In the official labour market statistics, there is no mapping of a profession or company to the skilled trades. In order to be able to draw conclusions nonetheless, the Federal Employment Agency's statistics department has created an aggregate of ‘typical’ skilled trades – i.e. occupations that can be clearly classified as skilled trades. However, there are also many professions that can be practised in both industry and skilled trades (e.g. electronic technicians). Furthermore, only professions requiring vocational, further education or academic qualifications are included – i.e. no assistant professions. The skilled trade aggregate therefore represents only a subset of the skilled trade sector.