Master bonus: A new upswing for the craft in NRW!

Master bonus: A new upswing for the craft in NRW!

In July 2023, the CDU-led state government of North Rhine-Westphalia introduced the "master bonus", a package of measures to combat the shortage of skilled workers in the craft. This premium of 2500 euros is intended to motivate young craftsmen to take the step towards master training. So far, 115 master premiums for successfully passed master exams have been paid in the Oberberg region. Nationwide, the number of premiums paid is over 5530, which corresponds to an investment of 12.5 million euros in the master training. The state government plans to provide 11 million euros annually for this initiative in the household, whereby more than 4,000 masters can be awarded per year. Jens Nettekoven, CDU member of the state parliament, emphasizes the need for an appealing trained specialists in Radevormwald and sees the master's certificate as a recognized seal of approval of the craft. He encourages young people to take the step from journeyman to the master. At the same time, Marc Zimmermann from the Greens emphasizes the importance of this premium for securing skilled workers and the equivalence of various educational routes. He praises the acceptance of the initiative and the provision of the funds in the state budget, such as rp-online.de

The introduction of the master bonus is an answer to a worrying development: the number of master tests in North Rhine-Westphalia has decreased in the past two decades. In 2002, 4706 master tests were passed, while only 3760 exams took place in 2022. This shows that a award -winning incentive structure is necessary to promote society, especially in the context of the upcoming energy transition. The state government has already planned 5.5 million euros in the current budget for the master premium. The aim is to further strengthen the protection of skilled workers, which is made difficult by demographic change. Defined stakeholders are handicraft champions who successfully passed their exams after July 1, 2023 and live in North Rhine -Westphalia. Applications can be submitted via the State Trading Center of the North Rhine-Westphalian Handwerk (LGH). More detailed information and the required application form can be found on the website Mags.nrw

importance of securing skilled workers

The master bonus is part of the North Rhine-Westphalian specialist offensive. Securing skilled workers is seen as a major challenge in the coming years that reinforced the demographic development. This urgency is particularly evident in the craft: in certain regions of North Rhine-Westphalia, especially in northern and northeastern employment agency districts, suitable workers are missing for almost seven out of ten vacancies. In contrast, fewer than two places are vacant in urban metropolitan areas such as Cologne and Solingen. Despite a general lack of craftsman in North Rhine -Westphalia, this is less pronounced than in other federal states. According to a study of the Kofas , for example, no qualified unemployed is available for six out of ten vacancies, while in North Rhine-Westphalia it is only the case for ten.

The situation in the craft is particularly tense: on average, more than two out of ten open spots remained vacant across all professions. The lack of craftsmanship primarily affects the construction industry, where over a third of the sought -after professions are vacant in bottleneck -relevant areas such as construction, architecture and building technology. In addition, a third of the employees in craftsmanship is already over 50 years old, which results in significant replacement needs due to the upcoming pension. The number of age groups in the number is lower, which increases the risk of a stricter shortage of skilled workers in the future.