German Job Market is So Hot That Candidates Are Ghosting Employers

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(Bloomberg) — Good workers are in such high demand in Germany that they’re increasingly ghosting prospective employers.

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While companies sometimes ignore undesired applicants, candidates in Europe’s biggest economy have begun disappearing during the hiring process, according to recruiters polled by job website Indeed.

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More than half said the trend has strengthened during the last year, with a quarter saying it happens at least once a week and almost one in 10 losing contact with a job seeker every day. Male applicants vanish most frequently.

The figures underscore the severe shortage of skilled labor facing German companies amid a rapidly aging population and pandemic-induced behavioral shifts. Labor isn’t the only input they are having trouble finding, with supply bottlenecks and soaring energy costs also weighing on output.

While it’s not unusual for candidates to break off contact before an interview takes place, 53% of recruiters said it’s become common not to hear back even after a conversation has taken place. Almost one in five say they’ve been ghosted even after a position was accepted, and 7% have experienced no-shows on the first day of work.

“Applicants often have the choice between several good options, just like companies used to, and don’t follow through on every application process consistently to the end,” said Tim Verhoeven, a recruiting expert at Indeed.