Major personnel concerns: This is the training that companies lack the most

Austria has one of the highest needs for workers and skilled workers in Europe. This is shown by a Eurostat evaluation for the first quarter of 2026. Along with the Netherlands, Belgium and Malta, Austria is one of the countries with the largest proportion of unfilled positions.

And domestic companies are feeling the bitter effects of this, as the current Skilled Workers Radar of the Institute for Economic Educational Research (ibw) on behalf of the WKÖ makes clear. 2,132 companies took part in the survey.

Around 78 percent of companies are affected by the shortage of skilled workers, 56 percent say that they feel it strongly or even very strongly. Estimated, around 155,000 skilled workers are currently needed across Austria. However, the level of demand varies depending on the industry.

Who is affected?

The situation is most difficult in the transport and traffic sectors at 66 percent, followed by tourism and leisure with 63 percent, trade and crafts with 62 percent and industry with 58 percent. In information and consulting, 36 percent of companies state that they are very or somewhat affected by the shortage of skilled workers.

The key here is apprenticeship graduates: More than 60 percent of companies report difficulties in finding people with apprenticeship qualifications. There are bottlenecks primarily in trades and sales, for cooks, in electronics and electrical engineering as well as in technical areas.

The consequence: the search for personnel is becoming more complex – 76 percent speak of a higher recruitment effort.

No ray of hope in sight

The shortage is also increasing the workload. 81 percent of the companies surveyed stated that the workload was difficult to manage with the existing employees. This in turn means a significant additional burden for entrepreneurs and their families, as 80 percent report. 64 percent say that the staff shortage is leading to rising wage costs and more overtime. 56 percent of companies are recording a loss in sales. For 48 percent, innovations and further development are suffering.

There doesn’t seem to be a ray of hope for the time being: 61 percent assume that the shortage of skilled workers will continue to worsen – due, among other things, to the increasing number of retirements.