Germany’s unemployment rate remains at 5.7% in Oct

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Germany recorded an unemployment rate unchanged at 5.7 per cent in October, with a fall revival weaker than expected, according to the Federal Employment Agency (BA).

According to BA’s data released on Thursday, despite a slight month-on-month decline, there were around 2.6 million unemployed people in Germany in October, 165,000 more than in the same period last year, reports Xinhua news agency.

The country’s total workforce also continued to develop at a subdued pace, although it reached a record high of 46 million in September, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said on Thursday.

As in previous months, the figure “hardly changed” on a seasonally-adjusted basis.

The German government expects the economy to contract by 0.4 per cent this year.

When presenting the latest forecast, Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Robert Habeck said that the need for skilled workers is the “most pressing structural problem”.

According to recent calculations by the German Economic Institute (IW), Europe’s largest economy is already lacking more than half a million skilled workers across all occupational groups.

Meanwhile, in sectors such as renewable energies, labour demand has continued to rise.

Given its aging population, the shortage of workers could grow to seven million by 2035 unless sufficient measures are taken, according to the Institute for Employment Research (IAB).

To address the issue, Germany is seeking to attract workers from outside the European Union, and has made it easier to obtain residence permit. The government is also aiming to speed up access to the labour market for asylum seekers.

“We want to make the best possible use of the professional potential and qualifications of people already living in Germany,” said Minister of the Interior and Community Nancy Faeser.

“To do this, we need to get them into work as quickly as possible.”