Unemployment Despite Increase Still at Pre-Corona Level

"In absolute numbers, we are where we were before Corona," said AMS board member Johannes Kopf in an APA interview. In May 2025, the unemployment rate is 6.9 percent. In 2021 and 2022, there was a high demand for labor. At the beginning of 2023, the lowest unemployment numbers in 15 years were recorded. In May 2020, the rate was 11.5 percent due to the lockdowns, then fell to 5.7 percent by May 2022.

Unemployment: Changes in the Labor Market Around the Corona Pandemic

The Corona short-time work cost the public sector around 9.8 billion euros. The AMS reclaimed around 174.7 million euros, with 47.2 million euros still outstanding at the end of May 2025. The handling of the short-time work allowance was "a mammoth project," said the AMS chief. "It was about going big, not small. So that companies do not go bankrupt." Through short-time work during the Corona pandemic, hundreds of thousands of people were able to remain employed. As part of the Corona short-time work, around 120,000 companies submitted 356,000 short-time work applications, of which around 332,000 were positively processed and around 24,000 were rejected or fully reclaimed. The AMS recorded around 1.33 million people supported in short-time work.

Around the Corona pandemic, according to the AMS chief, there have been some changes in the labor market. "The world of work has changed due to a shock." There has been "a boost in digitalization." Home office and the desire for reduced working hours among well-qualified individuals have remained, said Kopf. "Things have changed there." The labor shortage has also brought the topic of employer attractiveness into focus for many companies.

(APA/Red)

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