Thuringia: More unemployed and employed in 2023

People are recruiting for workers everywhere - whether on the Internet, in newspapers, on the radio or on television.

Thuringia: More unemployed and employed in 2023

People are recruiting for workers everywhere - whether on the Internet, in newspapers, on the radio or on television. Labor market experts did not expect a slump in the labor market for 2023. But employers are worried.

Halle/Erfurt (dpa/th) - The regional directorate of the Federal Employment Agency expects unemployment in Thuringia to increase next year. At the same time, employment will increase, but less than the average in Germany, said Markus Behrens, head of the Saxony-Anhalt-Thuringia regional office of the Federal Employment Agency in Halle. According to a forecast by the Institute for Labor Market and Occupational Research (IAB), there will be an average of 59,200 unemployed in Thuringia in 2023. That would be 2,200 people or 3.9 percent more than in 2022.

The number of employees subject to social insurance contributions of around 805,000 (2022) will increase by 0.1 percent on average in 2023. With Saarland, this is the lowest growth of all federal states. In Germany and eastern Germany, on the other hand, labor market experts expect employment to increase by 0.9 percent within the year. The main reason for the low growth in Thuringia is the demographic development. This goes hand in hand with a shortage of workers, since there are not enough young people. Because more people are retiring in Bavaria than young people are entering the job market.

"We are in a very competitive market," said Behrens. In other countries, too, there is a lack of well-trained workers. Employees are advertised everywhere, whether through the media or even on vehicles. "The market needs significantly more qualified immigration," he said. "Because even the children who are born today will only be available for the labor market after school and training in 20 years," he said. According to Behrens, the employment agencies will step up their efforts to bring more skilled workers to Thuringia from abroad.

According to Behrens, there is currently a great deal of uncertainty among employers as to how the business situation will develop. "A high risk factor is the energy crisis," said Behrens. In addition, there are high raw material prices and delivery problems. "We notice the uncertainty in the declining job reports and new hires," he said.

Now it is important that government support packages reach the companies. "So that they stay with the pole," said Behrens. Otherwise there is a risk that companies in particular that need a lot of energy for production could shut down areas or relocate to cheaper countries abroad. However, the experts do not expect a slump in the labor market in 2023, since in almost all areas of the economy not only skilled workers but also less qualified employees are needed.

Most recently, 59,300 unemployed were registered in Thuringia (November 2022), around a third (33.4 percent) of whom were without a job for a year or longer. The unemployment rate in Bavaria was 5.4 percent in November. According to the information, around 19,300 job offers are in stock at the employment agencies in Thuringia.