Germany’s Defence Boom: Why Staffing Isn’t the Bottleneck

Interview: Defence boom meets labour market “The Zeitenwende is Currently Not Failing Because of Staffing”

2026-05-22 From Detlev Karg 5 min Reading Time

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Germany’s defence industry is expanding rapidly. Multi-billion-euro contracts, new production lines and a political reappraisal of the sector are driving growth. But is there enough personnel to sustain it? Probably yes, says Hubertus Bardt, Managing Director of the German Economic Institute (IW) Cologne.

Hubertus Bardt, Managing Director of the German Economic Institute (IW Köln) is rather optimistic about the German labour market in times of Zeitenwende. (Picture: IW Köln) — Hubertus Bardt, Managing Director of the German Economic Institute (IW Köln) is rather optimistic about the German labour market in times of Zeitenwende.
(Picture: IW Köln)

Hubertus Bardt is since 2014 Managing Director and Head of Research at the Institute of the German Economy (IW). He studied economics at Philipps University Marburg and business administration at the FernUniversität in Hagen, before completing a doctorate in 2003 on the transformation of the classical conflict between labour and capital. In his publications, he has examined in depth the role of industry and the economy in defence.

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