Germany is facing a record shortage of skilled workers in information technology (IT) as the number of unfilled posts climbed to 149,000, the German digital association Bitkom said on Wednesday.
This marks an increase of 12,000 from the previous year, according to a survey among 853 companies from all industries. The continuous increase in recent years was only interrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
“The shortage of IT specialists in Germany is unrelated to economic cycles and is a systemic problem for the German economy,” said Bitkom President Ralf Wintergerst. “Too few skilled workers and too much regulation are slowing down digital Germany.”
A large majority of companies in Germany did not expect the situation to improve in the future, according to Bitkom. Only 3 percent anticipated the shortage to decrease, while 77 percent feared that the situation would worsen.
Europe’s largest economy is experiencing a massive shortage of skilled workers in many professions, making it highly dependent on immigration. The German government recently reformed the country’s immigration law, making it easier for qualified people to stay.
For IT specialists, the required relevant professional experience will be reduced from three to two years in March 2024. A university degree is not required, while language skills no longer need to be proven to obtain a visa, according to the German government.
On top of the acute shortage of skilled workers, Germany’s school and training system is also facing serious challenges. In the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) report 2022, which was published last week, pupils in Germany performed worse than ever.
Companies were dependent on well-trained specialists. “The PISA results ruthlessly expose the educational plight in which Germany finds itself,” said Achim Dercks, deputy managing director of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK).
This development was a major challenge for companies when it comes to training their skilled workers. According to the latest DIHK training survey, 80 percent of companies now provide offers to help young people with education deficits in training.
Source: Xinhua
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