ifo Institute: Short-Time Work Continues to Decline Slowly in Germany
The number of companies with short-time work continues to fall slowly in Germany. In August, 37 percent of the companies participating in the ifo Business Survey were using short-time work. In July, that figure was 42 percent. “The proportion of companies with short-time work has declined across almost all sectors, even if the overall numbers are still high,” says ifo labor market expert Sebastian Link. Manufacturing still topped the list in August with 53 percent of companies reporting short-time work, after 57 percent in July.
In the service sector, 33 percent of companies were still making use of short-time work in August, following 39 percent in July. In trade, the figure was 26 percent in August, down from 31 percent in July. Construction was relatively unaffected, with just 7 percent of companies reporting short-time work in August, after 11 percent in July.
The aggregate numbers of the major economic sectors mask enormous differences. This is especially plain to see among the service providers. Although the sector average was just 33 percent, in August 88 percent of travel agencies and tour operators were on short-time work, as were 74 percent of employment agencies, 71 percent of hotels, 69 percent of creative and arts companies, 52 percent of restaurant and catering companies, and 40 percent of publishing houses. There was particularly little short-time work in August in real estate with 4.2 percent and at information service providers with 2.8 percent.
The picture in manufacturing is similarly mixed: the average there was 53 percent, but 80 percent of metal manufacturers and processors were still on short-time work in August. The figure was 67 percent both for clothing manufacturers and for manufacturers of metal products. In the automotive industry, the share was 65 percent of companies compared to just 34 percent in the chemical industry, 14 percent among food and beverage manufacturers, and 4 percent in the pharmaceutical industry.
