German Electrical Trade Turns to Inclusion and Immigration as Skilled Worker Pipeline Runs Dry
18.06.2026 - 00:02:52 | boerse-global.de
A new inclusion enterprise in the small town of Diepholz is betting on a workforce where up to half the employees have severe disabilities. The company, called "ZusammenWerk" and run as a subsidiary of the Delme-Werkstätten, has quietly positioned itself as a specialist in DGUV V3 testing—the legally required safety checks on portable electrical equipment. Its operating radius spans roughly 50 kilometres, and for the first five years, the project is backed by the charity Aktion Mensch.
That business model reflects the shape of a wider struggle across Germany’s electrical trades: open posts are easier to fill now than during the 2022 panic, but nobody expects the relief to last.
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Shortage eases—temporarily
According to KfW Research’s data for the second quarter of 2026, just 21 percent of German companies report staffing gaps. That is a sharp drop from the 44.5 percent peak in 2022. The services sector still feels the pressure most acutely: one in four firms there cannot find the specialists they need, including the test technicians who check electrical equipment on site. In the main construction industry, nearly a third of businesses are struggling.
KfW’s chief economist Fritzi Köhler-Geib cautions that the improvement is largely a side effect of the weak economy. “If the cycle turns up, the shortage is likely to widen again,” she said.
Modular path to a journeyman certificate
In response, the central association of German electrical and IT trades (ZVEH) launched a new part-qualification set in mid-June. The programme is aimed at employees aged 25 and older and is built directly on the official training regulation for energy and building technology electricians. It consists of seven modules that can be completed online or in a hybrid format. The end goal is a full journeyman’s certificate, earned through an external examination.
Because the scheme qualifies for public funding, the Federal Employment Agency can, under certain conditions, cover the entire cost. The idea is to turn career-changers into competent technicians—for example, people who will later carry out the DGUV V3 tests on portable equipment.
Keeping “competent persons” competent
The legal rules for who may perform those tests are strict. Germany’s Technical Rule for Operational Safety (TRBS 1203) requires that test personnel keep their knowledge up to date. No fixed interval for refresher training is prescribed, but industry practice generally settles on about three years. That lets technicians stay on top of changes in the VDE regulations. Without continuous training, a worker cannot act as a “befähigte Person” (competent person) and conduct legally sound tests on portable devices.
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Immigration pilot and a shrinking apprentice pool
Alongside inclusion and upskilling, the sector is experimenting with targeted immigration. In Brandenburg an der Havel, a pilot called “FIT for German Climate Businesses” has placed skilled workers from Uzbekistan in building-services roles for the past four months. The aim is practical, on-the-job qualification leading to full recognition of their foreign credentials.
The urgency of these measures is underscored by the apprenticeship statistics. The number of trainees who entered the crafts sector with a Hauptschulabschluss (the basic secondary school leaving certificate) has fallen by more than 42 percent over the past decade. The share of Abitur holders (high-school graduates with university entrance qualifications) taking up craft apprenticeships has ticked up only slightly. The message is clear: the industry cannot afford to rely on new entrants alone—it must invest heavily in the workforce it already has.
