Number of Short-Time Workers in Germany Fell Heavily in June
In June, the number of short-time workers in Germany decreased heavily from 2.3 million to 1.5 million. This is its lowest level since February 2020. In June, 4.5 percent of dependent employees were still on short-time work, compared with 6.8 percent in the previous month. This is an ifo Institute estimate based on its Business Survey and on data from the German Federal Employment Agency. “The numbers fell particularly sharply in those industries that have seen an easing of coronavirus measures,” says ifo survey expert Stefan Sauer.
In hospitality, the number of people on short-time work fell from 520,000 (revised figure) in May to just 331,000 in June. However, this still represents 31.1 percent of the workforce here. In retail, the number of short-time workers fell from 226,000 to 104,000, or 4.2 percent of the workforce. “In manufacturing, short-time work figures have so far remained unaffected by the supply bottlenecks for intermediate products and raw materials,” Sauer adds. In this sector, short-time work fell from 387,000 to 257,000 people, or 3.7 percent of the workforce. In construction, the number of short-time workers decreased from 16,000 to 11,000, or 0.6 percent of the workforce.
