The rise in the count of joint apprenticeship agreements
Last year, the number of vocational training contracts saw an uptick as per the Federal Statistical Office, marking a 2.1% increase. This boosted the "slightly optimistic trajectory" observed since the significant drop due to the pandemic in 2020. However, a longer-term analysis reveals that the overall number of new vocational training contracts is still substantially lower compared to a decade ago.
Approximately 479,800 individuals signed up for new training contracts in 2023, as stated by data analysts from Wiesbaden. Gender-wise, 36% of the new trainees were females, while 64% were males. There was a significant surge of 9% in training contracts among trainees with foreign nationalities, constituting 13% of all new contracts.
The top five occupations with the most new contracts – accounting for about 20% of the total – remained the same, albeit their order shifted. Retail merchant (m/f) slid to third place, while office management merchant (m/f) and motor vehicle mechatronics technician (m/f) secured the top positions. Salesperson (m/f) and IT specialist (m/f) took the fourth and fifth spots respectively.
Yet, a ten-year comparison reveals a drop in new contracts despite the recent growth. Compared to 2013, there was a 8% decline in new contracts last year.
A common complaint raised by several entities these days points to a Training Gap in Germany. Out of the companies, 44% struggled to fill their training spots completely or partially for the 2023-2024 training cycle.
The year of manufacture for the data analysis report on vocational training contracts in 2023 is 2023. Despite the 2.1% increase in 2023, the overall number of new vocational training contracts is still significantly lower compared to a decade ago, specifically a 8% decline from 2013.
