Business debate in Hamburg: Who has the best future visions?

On February 12, 2025, a debate about the economy and future concepts took place in the Hamburg citizens. This debate fell in the period two and a half weeks before the citizens' election, which will take place on March 2, 2025. The CDU took the opportunity to accuse the SPD and the Greens of led Germany to the economic abyss. CDU parliamentary group leader Dennis Thering criticized the red-green government for the lack of growth strategy and demanded the creation of a senatorial post that was supposed to deal with digitization and reduction in bureaucracy.

SPD economic senator Melanie Leonhard defended the current economic situation of Hamburg and emphasized that the city was well standing well with over a million employees subject to social security contributions. In addition, she criticized the CDU for its attitude in the migration debate, which in her opinion harms the problem of skilled workers. In this context, the Greens parliamentary group leader Dominik Lorenzen also emphasized that the CDU draws too negative image of Germany.

a shortage of skilled workers as a central topic

A connected problem with the economic situation of Hamburg is the shortage of skilled workers, which, according to the labor market monitor of the Hamburg World Economic Institute (HWWI), could be short of 200,000 specialists by 2040. Professions with vocational training are particularly affected, with over 162,000 missing specialists being expected in these areas.

In the third quarter of 2024, 49.9% of companies in Hamburg could not fill vacancies within two months. 53.7% of the companies searched in vain for employees with a completed apprenticeship and 49.5% for people with a master, specialist or a further education. A significant scarcity of specialists is predicted in particular in the areas of "traffic, logistics, protection and security" as well as "raw material acquisition, production and production".

In order to counteract the shortage of skilled workers, various measures could be taken. For example, an increase in the employment participation of young mothers could provide around 15,000 additional workers with a dual professional qualification by 2040. An increase in the annual net immigration from 300,000 to 350,000 people might only increase GDP growth slightly.

In addition, the HWWi suggests that the statutory retirement age to increase to 70 years in order to reduce the skills of almost 18,000 people. Technical progress and automation could also help increase the GDP rate, even if they enlarge the skilled workers.

In this difficult situation, the Chamber of Commerce is active and has presented an updated skilled worker strategy that presents the results of the HWWI study and the current economic stimulus survey.