“As usual, the spring upturn in the labour market begins in March. However, this year it lacks significant momentum,” Andrea Nahles, Chair of the Executive Board of the Federal Employment Agency of Germany (BA), said today at the monthly press conference in Nuremberg.

Unemployment figures for March:
-49,000 to 3,021,000
Unemployed persons compared to last year:
+54,000
Unemployment compared to last month:
-0.1 percentage points to 6.4%

Unemployment and underemployment

The onset of the spring upturn saw unemployment fall by 49,000 to 3,021,000 in March 2026. Seasonally adjusted, it has remained unchanged from the previous month. The unemployment rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to 6.4 percent, remaining at the same level as the previous year. The number of unemployed persons is 54,000 higher than in March last year. The unemployment rate calculated by the German Federal Statistical Office in accordance with the ILO short-term employment concept stood at 4.2% in February.

In addition to unemployment, underemployment also includes labour market policy and short-term incapacity for work and, therefore, provides a more comprehensive picture. It also remained unchanged in March compared with the previous month, after adjustment for seasonal variations. At 3,690,000, it was 4,000 lower than one year ago. 

Short-time work

Before the start of short-time work, companies are required to notify the authorities of the expected loss of working hours. According to the latest data from 1 March to and including 25 March, 38,000 people were reported as being on short-time work due to the economic downturn.

Up-to-date data on actual usage is available up to January 2026. According to preliminary estimates, short-time work benefits were paid to 136,000 employees this month. That was 6,000 fewer than the previous month and 141,000 fewer than one year ago.

Gainful employment and persons employed

According to the German Federal Statistical Office, the number of people in employment (based on the domestic concept) dropped by 12,000 in February 2026 compared with the previous month, after seasonal adjustments. At 45.66 million persons, it is 119,000 lower than in the previous year. According to the Federal Employment Agency for Germany’s projections, seasonally adjusted employment subject to social insurance contributions fell by 30,000 between December 2025 and January 2026. Compared to the previous year, it was 72,000 lower at 34.75 million persons employed. In July 2026, 7.46 million people were in marginal employment, 44,000 fewer than in the same month last year. Of these, 4.02 million were employed exclusively in marginal jobs and 3.45 million in secondary marginal jobs.

Labour demand

Overall, demand for labour has stabilised at a low level. 638,000 jobs were registered with the Federal Employment Agency of Germany (BA) in March, 5,000 less than one year ago. The BA Job Vacancy Index (BA X) – an indicator of labour demand in Germany that takes into account not only the number of registered job vacancies but also new vacancies – stood at 103 points in March 2026.

Cash benefits in the event of unemployment and need for assistance

1,104,000 people received unemployment benefits in March 2026 according to BA projections, 98,000 more than one year ago. The estimated number of citizens eligible for the citizens’ income who were of working age stood at 3,820,000 in March. This represented a decrease of 147,000 people compared to March 2025. This means that 7.0 percent of people of working age living in Germany were in need of assistance.

Training market

Since October 2025, 332,000 job seekers have registered with employment agencies and job centres for a vocational training place, 2 percent more than in the same month last year. By March 2026, 213,000 had found neither a training place nor an alternative. The statistics also show that 366,000 apprenticeship places have been registered. Due to changes in our procedures, the number of apprenticeship places is unfortunately not currently reflected in full in the statistics. According to estimates for February 2026, it stands at -8 percent. However, it is still significantly below the figure for the same period last year. The placement of apprenticeship positions registered with employment agencies but not included in the statistics is not affected. In March, the training market is still in a state of flux. Consequently, the current data allows only for a rough and preliminary assessment of developments in the 2025/2026 advisory year.