Europe's news in English

COPY LINK

JOBS

Fire fighting voted most trusted profession in Germany

Fire fighters are the most trusted professionals in Germany for the seventh year running, according to a survey for “Reader’s Digest Deutschland” magazine released this week.

Published: 8 April 2009 09:45 CEST

Fire fighting voted most trusted profession in Germany

Photo: DPA

According to the ninth annual “European Trusted Brands 2009” survey, some 93 percent of Germans surveyed said they had a “fairly high” or “very high” level of trust in fire fighting personnel. They were closely followed by pilots (91 percent) or nurses (90 percent). Politicians finished in last place, with just 7 percent of those surveyed expressing any trust in them. In 2003, 12 percent of people trusted politicians.

Meanwhile journalists were ranked a step below lawyers with just a 24 percent trust level among Germans.

The police took sixth place (75 percent) in the survey, just behind pharmacists (86 percent) and doctors (84 percent). Teachers (59 percent) ranked just above judges (58 percent).

The survey spanned 16 countries across Europe, and most countries also ranked fire fighting among their top three most trusted professions, while politicians frequently ranked last place.

Those in Eastern Europe had much less trust in the law and the state than in the West. In Russia, just 23 percent of people trusted the police, whereas an impressive 56 percent trusted footballers (the European average was 21 percent).

More than 23,000 people took part in the study across Europe between September and October of 2008. Some 7,000 participants were in Germany.

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.

Url copied to clipboard!