Europan Commission Reveals Findings in Detailed Report
In the Middle Lower Rhine region, the landscape of dual vocational training is undergoing significant changes. According to the latest reports from the IHK (Chamber of Industry and Commerce), a total of 3,744 new training contracts were signed last year, marking a slight decrease of 4.4 percent compared to the previous year.
One of the noticeable trends is the increasing age of trainees at the start of their training. Daniela Perner, CEO of the IHK region Bildung, has stated that overall, trainees are becoming older, with 571 being 24 years old or older, and only 158 being 16 years old at the beginning of their training.
Jürgen Steinmetz, CEO of the IHK, sees grounds for hope regarding the number of new training contracts. However, the recruitment challenges faced by training companies remain a concern. Carsten Zielke, owner of four Edeka branches, is one such example. He has been training more than 20 years and annually trains 15 to 20 trainees. However, he faces the challenge of finding motivated young people who are genuinely interested in the retail profession and its daily work.
Zielke uses a wide range of measures for recruitment, including online platforms, social media, training fairs, print media, and close collaboration with schools and educational institutions. Despite these efforts, he admits that the recruitment process has become significantly more challenging in recent years.
The advantages for training companies include the direct imparting of own knowledge, special processes, and corporate culture. However, challenges such as the burden of training costs, finding qualified trainers, and balancing production with training responsibilities continue to persist.
Future projections usually emphasize the need for increased support to companies offering apprenticeships, digitalization of training methods, and efforts to attract a more diverse group of trainees, including women and migrants.
It is expected that the number of school leavers will rise again in the medium term in the Middle Lower Rhine region. This could potentially alleviate some of the recruitment challenges faced by training companies. For detailed, up-to-date information specific to the Middle Lower Rhine region, including exact trainee demographic data, current challenges, and future industry forecasts, it would be necessary to consult regional economic development reports, chambers of commerce publications, or specialized vocational training monitoring agencies in 2025.
The IHK education report 2024 highlights a wide range of around 230 training professions in the region. In Kreis Viersen alone, 702 new training contracts were signed last year. Carsten Zielke belongs to the total of 2,623 training companies in the chamber district. The report also states that trainees in the Middle Lower Rhine region are being prepared for the transition to the world of work.
The dual training system in Germany, which combines classroom instruction with on-the-job training, is crucial for workforce development in many regions, including the Middle Lower Rhine. However, challenges such as recruiting enough trainees, adapting training to changing economic needs, and managing demographic shifts continue to be significant hurdles.
- In light of the increasing age of trainees and recruitment challenges, some training companies are turning to various measures for attracting motivated young people, like Jürgen Steinmetz, who uses online platforms, social media, training fairs, print media, and close collaboration with schools.
- To address the challenges of finding qualified trainers and balancing production with training responsibilities, there is a need for increased support to companies offering apprenticeships.
- Future projections suggest that efforts will be made to attract a more diverse group of trainees, including women and migrants, to alleviate some of the current recruitment challenges.
- Education-and-self-development, career-development, personal-finance, job-search, and skills-training are crucial for preparing trainees in the Middle Lower Rhine region for the transition to the world of work, as emphasized in the IHK education report 2024.
