Since 2010, the trainee retention rate has risen by 18 percentage points, reaching a new high of 79% in 2024. At the same time, the number of apprenticeships completed fell by 14% in the same period. Although the proportion of unfilled training places fell slightly year-on-year to 33% in 2024, it remained at a very high level. This is according to a study published on Thursday by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB).
Trainees in finance and insurance, mining/energy and water supply, transport and warehousing and public administration had the best chances of being taken on: almost nine out of ten trainees who completed their training in 2024 were taken on in these sectors. At 60 percent, however, the takeover rate was lowest in agriculture and forestry. The takeover rate rose in all sectors in 2024. The takeover rate rose the least in the manufacturing industry and in the information and communication sector, while the increase was strongest in the education and teaching sector at 36%. “In view of the worsening shortage of skilled workers in the education and teaching sector, companies are apparently making more compromises when it comes to taking on their graduates,” explains IAB Director Bernd Fitzenberger.
Companies in Germany are still finding it difficult to fill the training places on offer. The number of newly concluded training contracts fell to 471,000 in 2024 and thus remained well below the level before the coronavirus crisis. “Every third training position remains unfilled, although demand from young people for dual training has recently increased again. The proportion of unfilled training places is therefore still far above the pre-corona level,” says IAB researcher Ute Leber. The proportion of companies eligible to provide training was 51% in 2024 and has hardly changed since the start of the coronavirus crisis. Of the companies eligible to provide training, 56% took part in training. The most common reason why companies did not provide training was a lack of staff. “The fact that vacancies often remain unfilled restricts companies from training skilled workers themselves. This means that the shortage of skilled workers today exacerbates the shortage of skilled workers tomorrow,” says IAB researcher Barbara Schwengler.
The study is based on the IAB Establishment Panel, a representative annual survey of around 15,000 companies of all sizes and sectors. The study and the data are available at: https://doku.iab.de/kurzber/2025/kb2025-14.pdf.
Source: Institute for Employment Research of the Federal Employment Agency (IAB)
