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Confusion over German jobless numbers

Unemployment in Germany will not break through the five million barrier even during an economic downturn, according to experts quoted in German newspapers on Saturday.

Published: 16 August 2008 12:19 CEST

Confusion over German jobless numbers

Photo:DPA

But others suggest there are up to a million people without jobs who are not classified as unemployed.

“The labour market has developed in such a positive way in the past two years that we will not attain the old record levels of more than five million jobless,” Holger Schaefer of the German economic institute IW told the daily Bild.

Another expert, Klaus Zimmerman, head of the DIW institute for economic research, said that Germany “will not see five million unemployed again” during a slowdown in growth because job creation is faster than it used to be.

The government expects economic growth of 1.2 percent of gross domestic product in 2009, which will bring about a “slight improvement” on the labour market, Heinrich Alt, head of the German employment agency, told the Berliner Zeitung.

“The number of unemployed could go down by 40,000 to an annual average of 3.234 million” in 2009, he predicted, noting that there would be as many as 90,000 fewer people on the labour market for demographic reasons.

Yet about a million jobless people never show up in statistics because they are stuck in qualification and training schemes, Raimund Becker, from the Federal Employment Agency (BA) said.

He told the Rheinische Post one in four of those on such schemes fail to get a job afterwards, but that the authorities still believe in a reduction of jobless figures.

Unemployment in June fell to 3.16 million, which is around 7.5 percent of the working population.

Economy Minister Michael Glos said on Friday he did not rule out a downwards revision of government estimates for growth in 2009.

In January 2006 the number of jobless in Germany went through the five million barrier.

afp/dpa

Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Munich ranks third in German cities with the highest total GDP, behind Berlin and Hamburg, but in terms of GDP per capita, it’s higher than both of them.

It also consistently ranks high, often highest, in terms of average household income.

As of 2023, nine of the 40 companies listed on DAX, Germany’s stock index, were based in Bavaria. Seven of those are based specifically in Munich.

While Frankfurt is commonly known to be Germany’s business capital, Munich can claim the title of Germany’s insurance capital, which is saying something, as Germany is home to some of the largest insurance firms in the world, like Allianz.

Beyond the state’s capital city, a number of international companies are based elsewhere in Bavaria, particularly in the Franken region, near Nuremberg.

Which companies actively hire English speakers?

Bavaria, and Munich in particular, is home to a number of companies at the forefront of international business. But the state is known for its traditional, sometimes conservative, culture, which affects its business culture as well.

Whereas companies embracing English as their primary business language are easy to find in Berlin, the practice is less common in the south. That said, there are some notable exceptions.

Sportswear giants, Adidas and Puma, both have their headquarters near Nuremberg in Herzogenaurach, and regularly recruit English speaking international talent.

“As an international company, our teams reflect the rich diversity of our consumers and communities,” Jon Greenhalgh, Senior Manager Media Relations for Adidas told The Local. “Fostering a culture of inclusion where we value and leverage differences, ensures that we can authentically engage with our employees and truly connect with our consumers.”

He added that around 40 per cent of Adidas’ Germany-based employees are foreign nationals, from over 100 different countries.

Siemens and BMW rank among Bavaria’s top employers, and are also known to hire their fair share of foreigners.

“In Germany, we recently had around 2,000 open positions,” Konstanze Somborn told The Local on behalf of Siemens AG.

He added that Siemens operates in 190 countries. “That is why we value international teams very much…English as a common language is very usual.”

READ ALSO: ‘Which German companies want to hire foreigners?’

Similarly, BMW hires workers from a variety of backgrounds.

“Every year, we hire lots of internationals and welcome them to the BMW Group,” Dr. Hans-Peter Ketterl, a press spokesman for BMW Group told The Local.

But not all of these positions are available to non-German speakers.

Ketterl added that BMW’s working language is German in the country, even though, “English is an indispensable entry requirement as the second corporate language in many areas of the company.”

Check job boards and follow best practices

If it’s your first time applying for jobs in Germany, make sure to change your resume to the German format, even for English positions.

While Germany is home to its own job boards, like Xing, LinkedIn is probably the best place to start. In addition to searching for positions based in your preferred location, you can check relevant groups, like Munich Startups, to broaden your horizons.

The English Jobs in Germany website is also a good resource to start with.

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