Ulm Chamber of Crafts starts employment bridge with India

Image Source: Freepik

13 trainees in the masonry and butcher’s trade will begin their training  from  the 1. September 2024. 

Germany is grappling with a critical labor shortage and aging population, with projections indicating a deficit of 7 million skilled workers by 2035. In order to support companies in the search for suitable employees, the Ulm Chamber of Crafts has initiated an employment bridge. With the help of an agency, the consultants of the chamber are looking for potential trainees in India. For the training year 2024, a total of 13 young men and women from India can now start their apprenticeships in the Ulm Chamber of Crafts – six of them in the butcher’s trade, seven in the masonry trade. 

Shortage of skilled workers in Germany

Around 9000 German companies are short of skilled workers. The service sector has been hit particularly hard.Several factors contribute to Germany’s labor shortage. One is the growing demographic imbalance, with over a fifth of the German population aged over 65. Another is that there are simply not enough qualified professionals for many professions.

Skilled workers that are in demand in Germany are:

• Nursing and healthcare.
• Engineering.
• Sales and marketing.
• IT and Software Development.
• Finance and accounting.
• Civil engineering and architecture.

New Immigration Policy

The new “Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz” (skilled workers immigration act) has been in force since November 2023, and German politicians are hoping that this will meet the demand. The main aim is to attract workers from non-EU countries and offer them long-term prospects to strengthen the German labor market.

In addition, the so-called “Chancenkarte” (opportunity card) will be introduced in Germany from 2024, which is intended to make it easier for a wider range of skilled workers from various professional fields to come to Germany to find a job.

Immigration from India to Germany

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited India in February 2023, wherein he encouraged the need for Indian IT professionals, coupled with the German-Indian Migration and Mobility Agreement signed in December 2022, have encouraged international agreements between both the countries.

Immigration from India has seen a dynamic increase over the past decade. India could be Germany’s biggest source of talent. Between 2013 and 2023,  the number of people with Indian citizenship in Germany rose from 48,000 to 151,000, and their share of the total foreign population increased from 0.7 per cent to 1.6 per cent.

With the help of an agency, the consultants of the Ulm Chamber of Commerce will continue to look for potential trainees in India.  Dr. Tobias Mehlich, Managing Director of the Ulm Chamber of Crafts, says: “Additional trainers and specialists are urgently needed in our crafts. That is why we must make it possible and support our companies as best we can. Our employment bridge is the start. The next step is to extend to other trades where there is a need and new countries.”