Sunday, January 6, 2019

Unemployment News

Late yesterday, ARD (public TV, Channel One) noted a 12-line type story over unemployment in Germany.

For 2018, the numbers now show the lowest number of unemployed people since the unification of the country (going back thirty years)....to 2.34-million Germans.  The numbers also show 45.22-million Germans employed (that includes not only full-time but mini-job occupants as well). 

So all of this ought to be absolutely positive?  Right?  Well....between the pay scale, inflation, and number of Germans living in poverty....it's a mixed situation.  A lot of craftsmen (plumbers, electricians) will tell you they are handling more work than humanly possible.  A number of small business owners will tell you that they are having trouble finding capable-kids for apprentice positions.  Job-Center bureaucrats will tell you that they have hundreds of people in the local area who aren't qualified for anything. 

It's a positive story but you have to look at the entire landscape.

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