Number of bottleneck occupations rises

The number of bottleneck occupations rose sharply in 2022. This can be seen from the BA’s annual skilled worker bottleneck analysis. A bottleneck was found in 200 of the approximately 1,200 assessed occupations, 52 more than a year earlier. By now, skilled workers are becoming scarce in every sixth occupation. 

The bottleneck occupations employing the most people include nursing occupations, professional drivers, medical assistants, construction occupations and occupations in childcare and motor vehicle technology. At the level of specialists and experts, new additions to the list include, for example, pharmacists, architects and occupations in the IT sector.

Compared to the previous year, new inclusions were, among others, jobs in hotel and catering services, metal construction, and bus driving.

157 occupational categories are being monitored because they could potentially develop into bottleneck occupations. These include office clerks, occupations in sales and also in the warehouse industry. 

One in two registered skilled vacancies is in a bottleneck occupation

At present, a shortage of skilled workers is found in one in six occupations. However, in 2022, half of the skilled vacancies registered with the BA were in one of these bottleneck occupations. This underlines the shortage.

Unemployed skilled workers less likely to seek a bottleneck occupation

The mismatch in the labour market, i.e. between job vacancies and applicant demand, is also evident from the current skilled worker bottleneck analysis. Of the skilled workers, experts and specialists registered as unemployed, only 26 percent were looking for employment in a bottleneck occupation.

Methodology and interactive analyses

Around 1,200 occupational fields are included in the skilled worker bottleneck analysis and assessed on the basis of a total of 14 indicators. The term bottleneck occupation is used when the six bottleneck indicators predominantly indicate a bottleneck. These include, for example, the time it takes to fill registered vacancies, the occupation-specific unemployment rate and salary development.

The current skilled worker bottleneck analysis, all occupations and the indicators can be downloaded from the statistics page Fachkräfteengpassanalyse (Skilled Worker Bottleneck Analysis). 

A list of bottleneck occupations is provided on the statistics page Engpassanalyse (Bottleneck Analysis). 

The corresponding methodological report can be found in the document Engpassanalyse – Methodische Weiterentwicklung (Bottleneck Analysis – Methodological Development).