Skills Shortage in Germany: A Major Challenge for Many Companies. That’s why an increasing number of German businesses are turning to international talent. Here’s how you can also attract skilled professionals to your company.
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What Are the Impacts of the Skills Shortage on German Companies?
According to a Study by the Competence Centre for Securing Skilled Workers (KOFA) between summer 2023 and summer 2024, there was a shortfall of around 532,000 qualified specialists. There is a particularly large shortage of skilled workers in healthcare, construction, public administration, defence, social security and retail.
Although the shortage of skilled workers has decreased slightly compared to the previous year, it remains at a “very high level,” primarily due to demographic challenges. With many people expected to retire in the coming years, it is likely that the personnel shortage could intensify further.
Therefore, a decline in the skills shortage is not expected in the coming years; the challenge will remain significant.
The good news: there are short-term solutions for German companies to employ qualified workers despite the skills shortage.
Employing Foreign Skilled Workers: What Are the Two Options?
We are talking about foreign skilled workers. The advantage is that by considering international professionals, a pool of qualified talent is accessed that remains largely untapped by most German companies.
There are two main ways for German companies to employ foreign skilled workers: personnel placement and temporary employment, also known as agency work or employee leasing.
1. Personnel Placement
Personnel placement occurs when a recruitment agency searches for employees on behalf of another company. In this case, the agency handles the recruiting process, and the employees found or placed are then employed directly by the company that engaged the agency. These placed professionals can also come from abroad. Learn more >>>
2. Temporary Employment
The second way for German companies to employ foreign skilled workers is through temporary employment. This solution is also referred to as personnel leasing, employee leasing, or agency work. It involves the time-limited borrowing of staff from another company—in this case, from a foreign company. Unlike personnel placement, where the employee is directly employed by the German company, temporary employment means that the employees remain employed by the lending company. They are simply “loaned” for a fixed period of time.
The advantages of temporary employment are clear. On the one hand, there is high predictability. Since it involves the time-limited borrowing of employees, companies can precisely meet their staffing needs, for example, in cases of employee absence or peak project demands.
The second major advantage of temporary employment with foreign skilled workers is high cost efficiency: foreign professionals, for example from Eastern Europe, are often more affordable than German employees. Additionally, employee leasing saves companies the potentially costly effort of conducting recruitment independently. Learn more>>>
Foreign Skilled Workers: Key Challenges
Foreign skilled workers could therefore be the key to addressing the personnel shortage. However, employing international professionals also comes with its own challenges, which should be highlighted here as well.
First and foremost, the numerous legal regulations must be observed and strictly adhered to. For example, Temporary employment is governed by the Law on the Regulation of Temporary Employment (Temporary Employment Act - AÜG) .
Employing foreign skilled workers also means being able to navigate language and cultural barriers.
And, of course, it must be ensured that the foreign professionals hired possess all the necessary qualifications to work effectively in Germany.
All of these challenges are easiest to manage when working with an experienced, specialized recruitment service provider. This ensures that professional qualifications are met, legal requirements are adhered to, and the entire process runs smoothly.
Temporary Employment International - our Personnel Service Provider for Skilled Workers from Abroad
We are a recruitment service provider specializing in Eastern Europe. We organize temporary employment and personnel placement of engineers and technicians from countries such as Poland, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Hungary, and other Eastern European nations.
Would you like to know exactly how we can help you attract foreign skilled workers to your company? Send us a message!
