Recruitment remains difficult for many companies: According to the DIHK Skilled Labour Report 2025/2026, more than a third of companies still cannot fill vacancies, at least partially. The survey reveals the specific qualification segments, industries, and company sizes where shortages are most evident, the anticipated consequences for businesses – and possible countermeasures.
The survey involved nearly 22,000 companies as part of the DIHK Economic Survey Autumn 2025. Of these, 36 percent reported difficulties in filling positions due to a lack of suitable personnel – a decrease of 7 percentage points compared to the previous year. At the same time, the proportion of businesses with no current staffing needs increased from 44 to 48 percent. This demonstrates how the economic downturn is increasingly reflected in the workforce planning of companies.
Stellenbesetzungsschwierigkeiten im Zeitverlauf, DIHK-Fachkräftereport 2025/2026
The supposed easing of the skilled labour shortage is deceptive.
Dr. Achim Dercks
-- Stellvertretender Hauptgeschäftsführer
While labour and skilled worker shortages were most pronounced in large companies previously, this has now shifted to medium-sized businesses. Of companies with more than 20 employees – accounting for roughly three-quarters of all jobs – over 40 percent report difficulties in filling positions.
Vocationally Skilled Workers Particularly in Demand
When companies cannot fill vacancies, employees with dual vocational training are most frequently sought without success (57 percent). This proportion has slightly increased, while it has decreased in all other qualification segments.
Qualifikationsniveaus, DIHK-Fachkräftereport 2025/2026
Personnel with advanced training and university degrees are particularly lacking in areas essential for future challenges such as digitisation, e-mobility, energy transition, and infrastructure expansion.
Skilled Labour Shortages Create Problems
83 percent of companies – slightly more than previously – anticipate negative consequences of labour and skilled worker shortages in the coming years. This highlights how demographic developments continue to exacerbate challenges, even with a weaker demand for personnel in the event of an ongoing economic slump.
Konsequenzen der Personalnot, DIHK-Fachkräftereport 2025/2026
The most frequently expected consequences of personnel shortages are rising labour costs (63 percent), increased workload for staff (55 percent), and restrictions on services (36 percent). Almost a quarter of companies also expect the loss of company-specific knowledge due to the retirement (and sometimes early departure) of older employees – in the industry sector, this figure is more than one third. This may lead to productivity losses, higher costs due to knowledge development, or competitive disadvantages.
A View into the Sectors
Possible Countermeasures
Numerous measures are needed to ensure skilled labour security, such as increasing female employment or strengthening training and skilled worker immigration. Additionally, keeping older persons in work for longer is crucial. Companies were specifically surveyed on this: 63 percent view tax advantages for employees of retirement age as beneficial, and 53 percent advocate for the removal of contributions to pension and unemployment insurance for companies employing individuals of retirement age. Simplified options for temporary post-retirement employment are recommended by 47 percent, and in the industry sector, this figure rises to 56 percent.
DIHK Recommendations
- The Active Pension decided by the German Bundestag can create incentives for continued employment in old age. However, self-employed persons should also be included in the regulation.
- Employer contributions for employees beyond the standard retirement age that do not entail entitlements should be abolished (in pension and unemployment insurance) to reduce the costs of continued employment for businesses and thus strengthen employment incentives.
- Flexible employment of older workers should be promoted as a means of securing skilled labour, thereby increasing incentives for businesses to continue employing older workers. The removal of the so-called pre-employment ban for persons beyond the standard retirement age enables fixed-term contracts without cause with the previous employer and is therefore a step in the right direction.
- The retirement pension without deductions after 45 years of contributions should be abolished so as not to provide additional incentives to retire early. The reductions that are otherwise imposed on early retirement should be reviewed and increased, if necessary, to reduce incentives for early retirement.
- The statutory retirement age should be adjusted to reflect changes in life expectancy. For example, an increase in life expectancy by one year could be divided into 2/3 extended working life and 1/3 additional retirement benefits.
Download
The complete survey results are available for download here:
DIHK Skilled Labour Securing Report 2025/2025 (PDF, 2 MB) (only available in German)
- Relevant in topic:
- Fachkräfte
- Key areas:
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- Ausbildung
- Beschäftigung
Released 19.12.2025
Modified 26.02.2026
Ansprechpartner
Dr. Stefan Hardege
Director Skilled Labor, Labor Market, Immigration
Dominik Ohlig
Press Office Duty Officer | Spokesperson