Fewer German Workers on Short-Time Work in May
The number of short-time workers in Germany fell to 277,000 in May, down from 399,000* in April. This corresponds to 0.8 percent of the workforce, down from 1.2 percent* in April. These figures are ifo Institute estimates based on its surveys as well as on data from the German Federal Employment Agency. “This decline runs through all sectors of the economy,” says ifo expert Stefan Sauer.
“The biggest declines are in trade,” Sauer says, “where short-time work is barely still in play at 0.5 percent of the workforce, and hospitality, where 3.9 percent of employees, or 42,000 people, remain on short-time work.” Sectors with the smallest declines are the automotive industry with 4.1 percent or 38,000 employees on short time work, textile manufacturers with 3.9 percent or 13,000 employees, and printing companies with 4.2 percent or 5,000 employees.
Due to the decline in short-time work, the ifo Institute will no longer request the data every month. In the future, the survey will be conducted on a quarterly basis. The next survey will take place in August 2022.
*revised figure
