France and Germany see mixed hiring outlook amid rising layoffs

In France, employers have announced roughly 2.3 million recruitment projects for 2026, a decline from previous years but still driven largely by very small, small and medium‑sized enterprises. The sectors with the strongest demand are commerce and distribution, health, hospitality, transport, construction, industry and digital services, together accounting for about 80 % of anticipated vacancies. At the same time, France Travail has recorded 483 collective redundancy plans between September 2023 and December 2025, highlighting a parallel increase in job cuts.

Germany faces a paradox of around three million job seekers confronting roughly 1.1 million unfilled positions, especially in health, transport and technical industries. The unemployment rate hovers near 6.3 %. Demographic trends will see about 13 million Germans retire over the next decade, while only about 7.8 million are expected to enter the labour market, intensifying the skills gap and underscoring the need for retraining and mobility measures.