According to a calculation by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), the Federal Republic of Germany will need an annual net immigration of 400,000 people into the labor market in order for employment in Germany to remain constant in the coming decades.
Of course, further measures are also necessary to keep the German economy on track. Investments in promising sectors are just as much a part of this as a significant upgrading of the major shortage occupations, a comprehensive education offensive to integrate young people into the world of work in a meaningful way and the expansion of childcare services so that more women can participate.
However, it is a fact that all these measures, even if they are fully effective, will not be enough to offset the effect of demographic change. It will not work without massive immigration into the German labor market.
Shortly before the federal elections on February 23, we take a look at the parties' election manifestos with regard to the issues of skills shortages and immigration. What is the level of awareness of the problem and what solutions are on offer?
CDU/CSU
In its election manifesto, the CDU/CSU states the challenges very clearly: "The shortage of jobs and skilled workers is slowing down our economic development." To counteract this, the party wants to create better framework conditions for women who want to work full-time, make care professions more attractive and invest more in further education and training, among other things.
A digital "work-and-stay agency" is to be set up for skilled workers from abroad to simplify the entire process of integrating them into the German labor market. The recognition of foreign professional qualifications is also to be simplified and accelerated.
The CDU/CSU seems to be aware that the immigration of workers from abroad is a decisive factor. However, the CDU/CSU's election manifesto often remains unclear when it comes to the specific measures to be implemented.
SPD
In some respects, the SPD's election manifesto is similar to that of the CDU/CSU, for example when it comes to the simplified recognition of foreign qualifications and diplomas. Great importance is also attached to the relevance of a good training policy.
There is an increased focus on the immigration of foreign skilled workers and the integration of refugees into the labor market. Integration courses, German language support and advisory services should contribute to this. The SPD therefore also includes those who come to Germany for reasons other than work.
The party also repeatedly emphasizes that fair wages are a decisive means of countering the shortage of skilled workers in several areas (health, care, education, training, etc.). Fixed-term employment contracts should also be reduced where possible in order to provide employees with longer-term prospects and security.
Alliance 90/The Greens
In many cases, the Greens' election manifesto is similar to that of the SPD. There is a strong focus on improving in-company training. Access to the labor market for women is also a key issue. The Greens also link the immigration of skilled workers with the simplified integration of refugees into the system. To this end, for example, the issuing of visas is to be simplified and completely digitalized and a digital immigration agency is to be set up.
The party would like to significantly improve working conditions in many areas. These include the social sector, education and care. Financial support, flexible working time models and a generally improved work-life balance should create incentives here.
The Greens also want to ensure that people with disabilities are better integrated into the labor market. There should also be financial incentives for older people who want to work beyond retirement age (the CDU/CSU also has plans for this in its program).
AfD
The AfD's election manifesto focuses on the potential of the domestic workforce and the recovery of skilled workers who have emigrated. There is little information on topics such as training young people or broader access for women to the labor market.
The party is critical of the term "nationwide shortage of skilled workers". The election manifesto makes this clear using the example of nursing staff who no longer want to work in the sector due to unattractive working conditions. The solution to this cannot be to recruit foreign workers, but to improve the conditions. However, the election manifesto remains very vague when it comes to proposing solutions.
Although the AfD also recognizes that there are large gaps in certain shortage occupations (skilled trades, healthcare, STEM), it is particularly important to the party that migration only takes place in moderation and according to strict criteria.
The Left
In its election manifesto, Die Linke also addresses the lack of workers and skilled workers, but sees the solution in particular in raising wages and improving working conditions. To this end, employees should be empowered through trade unions, collective agreements and good working time models.
The party also sees the training of young people as a priority. Companies that do not provide training themselves should pay a solidarity-based training levy to support other training companies. In addition, all training should be free of charge and guarantee permanent employment.
With regard to immigration into the German labor market, the Left's program remains very vague. The aim is to create a fair immigration society that guarantees full participation. One example of this is better recognition and qualification of immigrant teachers.
FDP
The shortage of skilled workers does not seem to play a particularly important role in the FDP's election manifesto, although it does not deny it entirely. One of the measures proposed by the party is to modernize the training of pedagogical professions. This should be free of tuition fees and adequately remunerated.
The FDP states very clearly that more immigration into the labor market is needed. However, it also particularly emphasizes that this must not be immigration into the social security systems. It should be easier for particularly qualified specialists to gain a foothold in the labor market. One proposal here is to have just one government agency to regulate labor migration.
In the care sector, the Liberals want to drastically simplify recognition procedures for foreign nursing staff and thus counteract the impending nursing shortage.
BSW
The BSW sees the solution to a shortage of skilled workers mainly in the training and qualification of young people in Germany. The party is skeptical about the immigration of foreign workers.
According to the BSW, a comprehensive renewal of education policy and the improvement of working conditions in educational institutions are required. The election manifesto offers few concrete solutions.
A look at the various election manifestos is very abbreviated and does not provide a comprehensive picture. However, it does at least provide a sense of the extent to which the German parties are aware of the problem of skills and labor shortages. In some cases, clear differences can be identified and, accordingly, the approaches to solutions are also very different.
Sources:
Photos Bundestag
