Job vacancies in German agriculture and forestry
Job vacancies in German agriculture and forestry stood at 5.5 thousands in Q2 2026, according to Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Eurostat and KfW Research / ifo Institute. It is one of the indicators in the Job vacancies and skilled labour shortage table (Value · Quarterly), with a complete series running from Q4 2010 to Q2 2026. The complete series with an interactive chart, free to download.
This indicator in the Job vacancies and skilled labour shortage table
| Indicator | Q2-2026 | Q1-2026 | Q4-2025 | Q3-2025 | Q2-2025 | Q1-2025 | Q4-2024 | Q3-2024 | Q2-2024 | Q1-2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany total | 1,023.4 | 1,153.2 | 1,258.9 | 1,039.8 | 1,058.4 | 1,158.4 | 1,568.3 | 1,278.8 | 1,375.2 | 1,597.4 | |
| Agriculture and forestry | 5.5 | 10.1 | 10.5 | 9.7 | 8.8 | 10.2 | 10.4 | 8.2 | 10.3 | 11.8 | |
| Mining, energy, water and waste | 11.7 | 11.4 | 12.4 | 10.3 | 12.3 | 12.5 | 16.1 | 15.1 | 14.5 | 15 |
Understanding job vacancies in German agriculture and forestry
Primary sector job openings quantified in this series isolate external recruitment across establishments operating in agriculture, hunting, forestry, and related service activities. The scope encompasses all vacant posts for which employers are actively recruiting regular staff, including roles reported to public employment offices as well as positions filled through local notices or agricultural networks. Openings in secondary and tertiary industries are excluded, along with unpaid family workers, independent smallholders without payroll staff, and internal reassignments. In the sectoral breakdown, this series distinguishes primary sector labor demand from manufacturing, construction, and services, reflecting recruitment for permanent and regular contractual positions.
Understanding quarterly figures for agriculture and forestry requires accounting for strong seasonal fluctuations driven by annual planting, cultivation, and harvest schedules. Quarter-on-quarter changes primarily reflect recurring calendar seasonality rather than shifting structural labor demand, making year-on-year comparisons across identical quarters the appropriate analytical method. Users should note that short-term seasonal farm laborers employed under temporary contribution exemptions may not appear fully in establishment vacancy counts that target positions subject to standard social security contributions. Revisions occur when updated administrative employer registers revise the weighting factors applied to agricultural survey respondents.
Frequently asked questions
- Does this series include short-term seasonal harvest workers?
- Vacancy counts primarily focus on positions intended for regular employment subject to statutory social security, meaning informal seasonal casual labor is largely excluded.
- How are agricultural vacancies categorized if a farm also operates a retail farm shop?
- The entire establishment is classified based on its principal economic output, which generally groups ancillary farm-shop activities under agriculture if farming is the primary activity.
- Why are quarterly agricultural vacancy movements so seasonal?
- Recruitment in farming and forestry follows biological and seasonal cycles, necessitating year-on-year comparisons to gauge underlying labor demand.