“There is still no sign of a turnaround in the labour market.” “The spring upturn remains weak in April,” said Andrea Nahles, Chairwoman of the Management Board of the Federal Employment Agency of Germany (BA), at today’s monthly press conference in Nuremberg.

Unemployed data in April:
-13,000 to 3,008,000
Unemployed data compared to the previous year:
+77,000
Unemployment rate compared to the previous month:
unchanged at 6.4%

Unemployment and underemployment 

As part of the spring upturn, unemployment fell by 13,000 to 3,008,000 in April 2026. However, on a seasonally adjusted basis, it rose by 20,000 compared with the previous month. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 6.4 percent. Compared with April last year, the number of unemployed is 77,000 higher; the unemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage points. The unemployment rate calculated by the German Federal Statistical Office in accordance with the ILO short-term employment concept stood at 4.2% in August.

In addition to unemployment, underemployment also includes labour market policy and short-term incapacity for work, and therefore provides a more comprehensive picture. Seasonally adjusted, it rose by 12,000 in April compared with the previous month. At 3,665,000, it was 18,000 higher than a 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 April to and including 26 April, 28,000 people were reported as being on short-time work due to the economic downturn.

Up-to-date figures on actual usage will be available until February 2026. According to preliminary estimates, short-time work benefits were paid to 156,000 employees this month. That was 11,000 more than the previous month, but 114,000 fewer than a year ago.

Gainful employment and persons employed

According to the Federal Statistical Office, the number of people in employment (based on the domestic concept) dropped by 25,000 in March 2026 compared with the previous month, after seasonal adjustment. At 45.66 million, it is 182,000 lower than in the previous year. According to projections by the Federal Employment Agency (BA), the number of jobs subject to social insurance contributions fell by 16,000 (seasonally adjusted) between January and February 2026. Compared to the previous year, it was 96,000 lower at 34.75 million persons employed. In February 2026, 7.47 million people were in marginal employment, 51,000 fewer than in the same month last year. Of these, 4.01 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. 641,000 jobs were registered with the BA in April – 5,000 fewer than a year ago. The BA Job Index (BA X) – an indicator of demand for personnel in Germany that takes into account both the number of registered job vacancies and new registrations – dropped by 1 point to 102 points in April 2026.

Cash benefits in the event of unemployment and need for assistance

1,070,000 people received unemployment benefits in April 2026 according to BA projections, 93,000 more than a year ago. The estimated number of citizens eligible for the universal basic income (“Bürgergeld”) who were of working age stood at 3,826,000 in April. This represented a decrease of 125,000 people compared with April 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, 357,000 applicants have registered with employment agencies and job centres for an apprenticeship training position, 1 percent more than in the same period last year. By April 2026, 211,000 had found neither an apprenticeship training position nor an alternative. The statistics also show that 380,000 apprenticeship training positions have been registered. Due to procedural changes, the number of apprenticeship training positions is currently not fully reflected in the statistics. However, according to estimates for March 2026, it stands at -7 per cent, which is still significantly lower than the figure for the same period last year. The placement of apprenticeship training positions registered with the employment agencies but not included in the statistics is not affected. In April, the training market is still in a state of flux. Consequently, the current data allow only a preliminary assessment of trends for the 2025/26 advisory year.