For workers with low seniority and helping jobs, a job change can mean a downgrade, according to a study. Experts, on the other hand, can benefit – not just in terms of salary.
Employees in unskilled or semi-skilled jobs obviously have little chance of advancement when changing jobs. This is the result of an analysis by the Bertelsmann Stiftung of career changes and their impact on those affected. Skilled workers and specialists primarily benefit from the prospect of higher pay associated with new jobs.
Changing jobs can increase working hours
New professional starts are most rewarding when employees move on to related activities. “Compared to switching to an unrelated occupation, wages can increase by up to 3,500 euros per year,” it says. “The more knowledge gained from the old job that can also be used in the new job, the greater the chances of a successful job change .”
For specialists, a successful new career start is not only financially rewarding – it also increases working hours. According to the study, employees in closely related jobs spend an average of 6.2 more days at work each year than those who move to a completely different job. Add in a less relevant job and the shifted plus is at least 4.3 days.
Assistants usually don’t have any opportunities for promotion and higher salary
According to the analysis, “Helpers” are especially at a disadvantage. Study author Roman Wink explained that this describes a person’s level of employment. This helping activity does not require any professional training. In many cases, these people are low-skilled, that is, people without professional qualifications. However, it is also possible to hire a professionally qualified person as an assistant.
According to this information, just over 11 percent of these employees change jobs annually – for skilled workers, the figure is only about 7 percent. In addition, helpers took on new jobs twice as often compared to employees in high-skilled jobs. In ‘hopping’, they have to focus more on the needs of the labor market than on their existing skills – and thus have to be retrained again and again. Partial qualifications up to vocational qualifications are therefore “an important lever”, according to the Bertelsmann Stiftung.
Women Are Disadvantaged When Changing Jobs
In addition, women tend to fare worse when changing jobs. For them, vocational training also improves their chances of advancement, but does not eliminate disadvantage in gender comparisons. Men trained successfully completed 82 percent of job transitions from assistant to specialist, compared with just under 77 percent for women. In addition, even with training, women have a 13 percent higher risk of being demoted from a professionally qualified job than men, compared to just 9 percent.
skills need to be more obvious
Tobias Ortmann, a labor market expert at the foundation, emphasizes that higher labor force participation rates are a decisive factor in addressing the shortage of skilled workers. If the change is successful, it’s also a win for employers. The research highlights that, in most cases, low-skilled workers and helpers have available skills, even if those skills are not backed by formal credentials. Therefore, programs are needed to make skills visible, Wink requires.
Last week, an analysis by the Federal Employment Agency (BA) showed that there is a shortage of skilled workers in every six industries in Germany. Of the roughly 1,200 assessed occupations, 200 experienced bottlenecks last year — 52 more than in 2021. The number of bottleneck occupations thus rose to new highs.
According to the BA, nursing professions, professional drivers, medical specialists, construction and craft professions, childcare, automotive engineering and IT professions have been particularly affected by the shortage of skilled workers. In 2022, hotel or food service, metal construction, and bus drivers were added compared to the previous year. Half of job openings last year were in one of these unskilled occupations.