Economy Number of unemployed in Germany falls slightly in March
The spring recovery on the German labor market was initially weak. The number of unemployed people in Germany fell by 22,000 to 2.967 million in March, according to the Federal Employment Agency in Nuremberg.
28.03.2025, 10:12
SDA
This is the weakest fall in unemployment in a March since 2009, when the number had actually risen during the financial crisis.
Compared to the same month last year, the number of unemployed was 198,000 higher. According to the Federal Agency, the unemployment rate in March was unchanged from February at 6.4 percent.
"March marks the start of the so-called spring recovery on the labor market. This year, however, it is also being noticeably slowed down by the economic slump," said Andrea Nahles, Chairwoman of the Federal Agency.
The number of vacancies to be filled also fell. In March, 643,000 job vacancies were registered with the employment agencies. That is 64,000 fewer than a year ago.
Short-time work continues to rise slightly. In January, the Federal Employment Agency paid cyclical short-time working benefits to 240,000 employees. That was 36,000 more than in December 2024 and 51,000 more than in January of last year. More up-to-date data on actual take-up is not currently available. However, 43,000 more people applied for short-time work between March 1 and 24.
There is still movement on the training market. There are 327,000 applicants compared to 416,000 registered apprenticeships. That is 10,000 more applicants and 22,000 fewer positions than a year ago.
