Germany is short of nearly 30,000 qualified workers in the transport and logistics sector, including truck drivers, logistics and procurement professionals, and bus and tram operators. According to a study by the Competence Center for Skilled Labor Security (KOFA), reported by the Funke Media Group’s Monday editions, the average number of unfilled positions was considered between July 2023 and June 2024.
Although the skills gap has decreased by 25% since the strong increase during the COVID-19 pandemic, it still remains at a high level, according to the study’s author, Jurek Tiedemann.
The study found a significant shortage of skilled workers in the following areas: truck drivers (4,508 more unfilled positions than qualified job seekers), bus and tram operators (4,083 more unfilled positions), and warehouse workers (3,851 more unfilled positions).
Companies that operate and monitor rail traffic are having the most difficulty in finding skilled workers, with 91.5% of unfilled positions remaining vacant, despite the absolute skills gap being lower at 2,875 more unfilled positions than qualified workers.
Despite the total number of reported qualified job seekers being 149,000, exceeding the number of unfilled positions at 109,000, the study found that the skills gap in the transport and logistics sector has been consistently higher than the number of job seekers since 2010.
“Talented workers are not evenly distributed across occupations” Tiedemann concluded. “Although the skills gap has decreased in the transport and logistics sector, many qualified skilled workers are still being sought after.”
The study emphasized the importance of addressing the skills gap, as it poses a challenge for the economy, particularly in times of complex supply chains and global connectivity. The lack of skilled workers can lead to delays or even production stops in the supply chain, and the shortage of bus and tram operators makes the mobility transition more difficult.
“To counter the skills gap, more young people should be encouraged to pursue vocational training, and incentives should be set to keep older employees on the labor market longer. Additionally, bureaucratic hurdles, especially in the recruitment of international skilled workers, should be further reduced” Tiedemann said to the Funke newspapers.
The KOFA is located at the German Institute for Economic Research (IW) and is a project commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Economics. It aims to support small and medium-sized enterprises in their personnel work.