The impact of skills shortage on economic development in Germany – A mixed method approach

Arbeitspapier

In Europe, there is an increasing shortage of skilled workers and jobs remain vacant for long periods of time. The shortage of skilled workers has become a key issue for various stakeholders, as it not only makes it difficult to recruit and retain employees, but it is also seen as a significant barrier to innovation for companies. So far, most analyses of skills shortage take place at company level. We supplement this with a regional perspective, because many measures, especially those of policy makers, are conducted on the regional level. We examine the impact of skills shortage on various aspects of regional economic development. Using the spatial vector autoregressive panel model, significant effects on gross domestic product (GDP), employment are found, but not on research and development (R&D) activities. Expert interviews are used to dig deeper into the reasons for these findings, showing that the disadvantages of skills shortages on innovativeness are perceived, but relate to the future or to the more general economic situation.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: Working Papers on Innovation and Space ; No. 03.24

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Economic Development: General ; Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights: General ; Labor Demand ; Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure ; Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
• Subject: skills shortage ; regional development ; regional innovativeness ; mixed methods

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Hertrich, Tobias Johannes ; Brenner, Thomas
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Philipps-University Marburg, Department of Geography
• (where): Marburg
• (when): 2024

Further information

• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:41 AM CET