German trades buck the downturn with more apprentices

While many industrial firms are cutting apprenticeships in response to a tough global market, training in the skilled trades is moving the other way. Between January and June 2026, according to the Central Association of German Crafts (ZDH), almost 67,800 new apprenticeship contracts were entered into the register – roughly 3,160 more than a year earlier, a rise of 4.9 percent.

It is the fourth consecutive year of rising contract numbers. Such a high June figure had last been recorded in 2018, said crafts president Jörg Dittrich. For him it is a bright spot in an otherwise difficult economy – and a sign that young people are deliberately choosing a trade.

Why the trend is turning

Dittrich points to several reasons. Faced with the rapid spread of artificial intelligence, many young people are looking for work that feels secure – and finding it in the trades. Better pay and promotion prospects play a part, as do image campaigns that have finally landed with the public. The fact that parts of industry are scaling back their training places shifts the balance further.

In some regions the increase is sharper still. In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, 972 new contracts have been signed since the start of the year, up 11.2 percent, with motor-vehicle and climate-technology trades in strong demand. In Bavaria, the number of roofing apprentices rose by 15 percent. Nationwide, about 346,388 young people are now in a crafts apprenticeship.

Anyone who missed the start need not wait a year: although the training year begins in early August in many states, around 20,460 places advertised through the chambers' apprenticeship exchanges are still open – with double-digit growth in some chamber districts.

To keep the momentum going, Dittrich is calling for more support for the trades' training centres. Many are 30, 40 or 50 years old and badly in need of renovation, he says, and that backlog should be taken as seriously as crumbling bridges. He also wants the equal standing of vocational and academic education finally written into law – and reflected in funding.