Frankfurt am Main – In response to the latest OECD report, “Continuing Education in Germany,” IG Metall is calling on employers and policymakers to invest more heavily in continuing education and to remove organizational and structural barriers to lifelong learning. “Those who invest in continuing education now are investing in the jobs of the future. Digitalization, globalization, and the ecological transformation of the economy are rapidly changing the nature of jobs. Only through systematic workforce development and appropriate support for continuing education in the workplace will we succeed in shaping this transformation of our economy in a socially responsible and equitable manner, while ensuring everyone is included. That must be our goal. We must not settle for a mediocre ranking,” said Jörg Hofmann, President of IG Metall, on Friday in Frankfurt.
According to the OECD, Germany lags significantly behind other high-performing OECD countries in terms of participation in learning opportunities that go beyond initial training. Adults with low basic skills, low-wage earners, and employees at small and medium-sized enterprises have particularly low participation rates. From IG Metall’s perspective, this is especially concerning because digitalization and automation will soon significantly change—or even eliminate—many unskilled jobs.
The OECD report confirms studies and surveys that IG Metall has conducted in the past within its area of responsibility. According to these findings, more than half of all companies lack systematic workforce planning and needs assessment. Ninety percent of respondents see room for improvement in counseling, support, and motivation regarding continuing education.
IG Metall addressed the issue of continuing education early on and incorporated it into collective bargaining agreements. IG Metall is also actively involved in the National Continuing Education Strategy (NWS) and, within this framework, has launched a project to establish in-company continuing education mentors. Continuing education mentors are intended to specifically reach out to and support employees regarding continuing education. In doing so, they counteract a key weakness in the German continuing education landscape highlighted by the latest OECD report: the offerings are too confusing and complex. Hans-Jürgen Urban, an executive board member responsible for, among other things, training policy, comments: “We also want to specifically reach employees who have not yet engaged with continuing education. Continuing education mentors thus support workplace personnel development and the implementation of our collective bargaining agreement on continuing education.”
Further information and press photos by Jörg Hofmann
Further information and press photos of Dr. Hans-Jürgen Urban
