Europe sees 40% surge in defense job openings since Ukraine war

The number of job postings in the European defense industry has risen sharply in recent years. It is currently around 40 percent higher than before the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022, according to an analysis by the job portal Indeed. According to the analysis, German defense companies are particularly in demand for specialists in the fields of technology, engineering, and IT.

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According to Indeed, the largest supply of defense jobs in Europe is currently in France. 43 percent of all industry-specific job postings are published there. Germany and Great Britain follow with 17 percent each; the remaining 23 percent is accounted for by other European countries.

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According to the portal's analysis, job seekers' interest in positions in the defense industry has also increased. Especially in Germany, the defense sector has "become significantly more attractive" since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Since then, the search volume for defense jobs has consistently remained above pre-war levels – reaching a peak in March of this year, during the political debate about easing the debt brake in favor of higher defense spending.

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According to the portal, the defense industry is primarily seeking engineers in mechanical and electrical engineering, as well as IT specialists in software development and IT support and infrastructure. There is also comparatively high demand in the areas of production and manufacturing, project management, management, office and administration, and sales. According to Indeed, many of these positions have a technical or production-related focus.

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"The defense industry is demanding job profiles similar to those in the automotive industry, which is currently under severe pressure," explained Indeed labor market expert Virginia Sondergeld. However, compared to the automotive industry, the defense industry remains a relatively small economic sector in Germany and Europe. Therefore, the industry will hardly be able to fully offset job losses in the automotive industry.

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Indeed analyzed job postings from 25 of Europe's largest defense companies, including Airbus, Hensoldt, Leonardo, Saab, and Thales. The portal claims to be the number one job site worldwide; more than 350 million visitors use it every month to search for jobs, post resumes, or research companies. Nearly 3.5 million employers use Indeed to search for employees.