Fewer and fewer young adults in Germany have traditional vocational training, and the educational gap is growing. The decline in training is the largest compared to OECD countries. The study organizers see two main reasons.
The proportion of young adults with traditional vocational training has declined sharply in Germany. Last year, 38 percent of 25 to 34-year-olds had a vocational qualification, compared to 51 percent in 2015, according to the annual country comparison “Education at a Glance” by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The decline is the largest in all OECD countries.
Young people are missing from the labor market. “There are currently over 31,000 open training positions in the skilled trades, which means thousands of unused educational and career opportunities for young people,” said Holger Schwannecke, Secretary General of the Central Association of German Crafts (ZDH). The OECD study must therefore be an urgent reason for the federal and state governments to strengthen vocational training and give priority to filling the training positions that are still open.
Anyone who has an education can find work
The OECD figures also show: 94 percent of vocationally trained people in Germany find a job within two years – the highest figure of all OECD countries. In addition, this group earns on average 67 percent more than people with a lower level of education.
There is a shortage of 1.7 million people as skilled workers
The proportion of those who had a maximum of a secondary school leaving certificate but no further qualifications such as a high school diploma or training increased from 13 to 16 percent. In addition to Germany, this value has only increased by one point in all OECD countries in the Czech Republic.
The State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Education, Jens Brandenburg, was concerned: “16 percent – that is almost 1.7 million young adults who are not available as urgently needed skilled workers,” said the FDP politician. These young people have fewer chances of good employment and sufficient income.
The aim is to counteract this with, among other things, a funding program for hotspot schools, which is scheduled to start in a year. The federal government wants to invest one billion euros every year.
OECD: Teacher shortage and “more migration” as problems
The head of the “OECD Berlin Centre”, Nicola Brandt, appealed to politicians to start funding “in the youngest years” in order to prevent young people from falling behind and ending up without a good qualification. She spoke of the particular pressure that the German education system is exposed to and cited the lack of teachers and “more migration” of children than in other countries as reasons – these must be integrated.
Studying is becoming more and more popular
The OECD report also speaks of “educational polarization” in Germany. While the number of young people without vocational training or other qualifications after a secondary school leaving certificate is increasing, more and more 25 to 34 year olds are aiming for higher qualifications such as a university degree. In 2015, 30 percent of this group had a university degree or a similar qualification, and by 2022 this figure had already reached 37.5 percent.
The annual study compares the education systems of the 38 OECD member states and other partner countries. The study critically notes that Germany invests less money in education in relation to its gross domestic product than the OECD average.
Number ratio Teacher pupil comparatively good
The ratio of teachers to students, on the other hand, is comparatively good: across all educational institutions from primary school to university it is 1 to 13 in Germany, and the OECD average is 1 to 15.
In addition, teachers in Germany earn comparatively very well: with 15 years of professional experience, according to the report, adjusted for purchasing power, they earn around 80,000 to 90,000 euros per year, depending on the type of school. Only in Luxembourg do people pay more.
Another positive development: In the younger group of 18 to 24 year olds, the proportion of those who are neither in training nor working has decreased again: from 9.7 percent in 2021 to 8.6 percent in the past year. Germany is doing very well in the OECD comparison (14.7) and belongs to the group of countries with the lowest rate.
With information from Jim-Bob Nickschas, ARD Capital Studio