Frankfurt am Main – Only one in five companies (19.1%) in Germany still trains new entrants to the workforce. And even those that do train new employees are doing so on too small a scale—not even five percent of employees in companies that offer training are apprentices. With an apprenticeship rate of just 4.3 percent, employers in the sectors covered by IG Metall are even below average. There, 4.8 million employees are followed by only 209,000 apprentices. These are the findings of the IG Metall 2023 Apprenticeship Report.
Hans-Jürgen Urban, the IG Metall executive board member responsible for education and training policy, says: “Employers’ commitment to their own future and that of young people is sobering. Those who provide little or no training have no right to complain about a skilled-labor shortage. Employers should finally switch from complaining to taking action. The training boycott must come to an end.”
The Most Popular Occupations
Within the IG Metall sector, skilled trades continued to account for the largest number of new apprenticeship contracts: 71,300 apprentices signed a new contract in 2023—2 percent more than the pre-crisis level in 2019. Similarly, the number of new contracts in IT professions rose by 11 percent to 25,600 compared to pre-COVID levels. The remaining occupations contributed to an overall decline in the apprenticeship figures: business and logistics (48,900 contracts, down 10 percent), metalworking and electrical trades (42,700 contracts, down 9 percent), two-year occupations such as machine operator or warehouse clerk (12,600 contracts, down 5 percent), and design and engineering occupations (3,600 contracts, down 5 percent).
Mismatch Problems Are Increasing
For the second year in a row, the number of unfilled apprenticeship positions exceeds the number of applicants still looking for a position. At the same time, the number of young people without an apprenticeship placement has risen, exacerbating the situation. Overall, there were 73,400 unfilled apprenticeship positions last year, compared with 63,700 young people without a placement who were still looking for one. All educational levels are represented among them (lower secondary school diploma: 30%; intermediate secondary school diploma: 34%; (advanced) high school diploma: 25%; no diploma: 2%). In addition, there are 2.6 million young people between the ages of 20 and 34 who do not have a vocational qualification.
According to IG Metall, these so-called “mismatch problems” in the apprenticeship market stem from a lack of career guidance during and after school, as well as from regionally uneven distribution and unattractive apprenticeship offerings by companies. This is often compounded by rigid hiring practices that place too much emphasis on formal educational credentials.
Better Transition Management and an Apprenticeship Levy
IG Metall Executive Board Member Urban: “The apprenticeship market—and young people in particular—now need a package of measures: a broader range of qualified and attractive apprenticeship positions, as well as systematic information and efforts to inspire young people about the full spectrum of professions through youth career agencies.” However, the core responsibility remains with companies: “Those who provide apprenticeships must do so under good conditions. Those who do not provide training must pay.” In addition to systematic transition management between school and work, IG Metall is therefore calling for statutory levy-based financing. A levy on companies that do not provide training would be used to support those that do.
Editor’s note: IG Metall bases its analysis on figures from the Federal Employment Agency and the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training. IG Metall’s full “2023 Apprenticeship Report” can be found here.
