Despite the looming economic downturn, the IAB research institute reported that there are 1.93 million job vacancies in Germany, up 11% on the first quarter and 66% more than in the second quarter of last year. According to the employers’ federation, the shortage of skilled workers, in particular, is pressing and could lead to a decline in prosperity over the next 10 years. The scale of the labor shortage is characterized by a nearly seven-fold increase in the demand for new career entrants, who typically have no training in the field.
The labor shortage is sometimes forcing employers to take surprising steps, with the Telegraphenamt Hotel in Berlin advertising for a Head of Vacation among its 200 employees. The job will be drawn by lot of those who have worked a year at the hotel, after which they will be given 12 months holiday with a gross salary of €25,000 and can spend the year as they wish.