16 July 2009

German manufacturing workforce declining

The German manufacturing sector’s workforce decreased by 2.3% for the year to May.

Germany’s export-dependent economy sank into recession last year as the global downturn dried up demand for its manufactured goods, government data showed. Industrial orders and production are beginning to pick up, but the economy should still shrink by 6% this year.

The German Federal Statistical Office said 5.08 million people worked in manufacturing companies with 50 employees or more at the end of May, 119,400 fewer than a year earlier.

The 2.3% drop was the sharpest since a 2.4% decline in February 2004, during Germany’s last downturn.

The sharpest drops were in metal production, where employee numbers fell by 3.3% to 477,000, and in production of cars and auto parts. The auto industry workforce was down 3.1% to 725,000.

German jobless numbers increased of late, although the recession’s impact has not yet been dramatic because employers have used short-time working arrangements to preserve jobs.

In June, the unemployment rate was 8.1%. A total of 3.41 million people were registered jobless, 250,000 more than a year earlier.

For related information, go to www.isa.org/productivity.