Too few employees, too much bureaucracy: how three craftsmen from Dresden are defying the crisis

From Luisa Zenker

Dresden. Master roofer Jörg Dittrich's appeal to the state parties is clear: "The economy must become a top priority," says the President of the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts. He is not only concerned with "reducing bureaucracy", but also with the appreciation of the skilled crafts sector, which suffers from a poor image. The Chamber of Skilled Crafts is therefore calling for academic and vocational training to be valued equally. The Chamber of Skilled Crafts has organized a tour of Dresden to mark the Day of German Skilled Crafts.

A blue-painted bus took us to three hidden champions: a joinery, a bakery and a car painter. They show success stories in the middle of Dresden, even though fewer and fewer people are working in the skilled trades. While 35,389 craft businesses were still toiling away in Saxony in 2021, there are now 258 fewer companies, according to the latest figures from the State Statistical Office. The number of employees fell by around 3,300 to 282,500 tradespeople.

Dittrich therefore draws attention to a specific group of people: at the end of 2023, there were around 626,000 young people in Germany between the ages of 15 and 24 who were neither in school nor in employment, training or studying. He is concerned that they will "end up on a citizen's income at the age of 35" and wants to attract them to the skilled trades. He also knows that the demand for skilled workers cannot only be met within Germany and is therefore calling for "qualified immigration". Dresden contributes to this: 48 trainees of Vietnamese origin have started an apprenticeship in the region. In addition to bureaucratic hurdles, the lack of a welcoming culture in companies is also repeatedly criticized. "It's not the skilled trades, it's society that needs to change," says Dittrich, who is focusing on three talented people in the region for Skilled Trades Day. A baker, a car painter and a furniture manufacturer show why they are successful despite the problems.

The digital furniture makers

All furniture created by Patrick and Thorsten Henseler is first produced digitally. The brothers know digitalization. Four years ago, they founded the Redwood joinery in Dresden-Leuben. They therefore rely not only on saws and sanders, but also on social media and Google advertising. "Instagram knows which people are ready to buy." This is where the brothers recruit new customers throughout Germany for their hobbyhorse: solid wood furniture - made from oak, ash and alder.

Interested parties can take a close look at the furniture in the digital 3D living room and then order online. From the decisive mouse click, it takes three to four weeks before the chair is in your own room. The furniture is custom-made and delivered within this time. The digital business accounts for 30 percent of sales and the aim is to increase this to 50 percent. "Our key to success is our online presence," says civil engineer Thorsten Henseler

The brothers grew up in Namibia, where their parents emigrated to. They preferred to do their vocational training in Germany: "German vocational training opens every door," says Patrick Henseler. He trained as a master carpenter in Dresden.

The start-up already has seven employees. Normally, the two also train apprentices, but they have stopped this year. "There are too many compulsory courses," says Patrick Henseler, who pays his apprentices through vocational school, vacations and further training in the first year of their apprenticeship, but hardly sees them.

The painters for Tesla

Jens Bertholdt never put pressure on his children, says the master car painter. Nevertheless, both sons opted for a career in his garage. His son Felix had previously trained as a media designer. With a salary of five euros an hour at the time, he then asked his father what you earn as a painter. The hourly wage currently fluctuates between 15 and 20 euros, says Jens Berthold, who now runs the workshop with his two sons. The 59-year-old himself took over the business from his father. He in turn founded the company in 1972 with three employees to paint Wartburg and Trabant cars. Gradually, the company was able to expand in the Dresden-Reick neighborhood and grow to 40 people. Five master craftsman certificates hang in the offices, the youngest son Franz was the best master craftsman in his year.

But even the painter cannot avoid energy costs. In summer, the photovoltaic system on the roof allows them to be self-sufficient, but in winter, when temperatures drop below zero, the paint booth still has to be kept at 20 degrees all the time. The company's success story is obviously down to the fact that it has moved with the times. It is one of the few garages in Dresden that is allowed to repair Teslas. Since 2019, the company has also digitized the workshop. From the damage report to the repair status to completion, everything is done digitally.

The flood bakery

"We were totally submerged," says master baker Carsten Wiederhold. The 70-year-old remembers the Elbe floods of 2002, 2006 and 2013 well, as the bakery on the Laubegast bank was completely submerged.

The Dresden bakery delivers to ten hotels: "It's difficult for them to explain that there are no bread rolls because the bakery is under water," says Wiederhold. The bakery from Laubegast has therefore left tradition behind and approached the city's business development agency after the floods. It was then that it "clicked", the master baker recalls of the June evening when he was sitting on the balcony with his son watching the floods. That very night, he discussed with him how to proceed. In 2015, the production facilities then moved to the safety of Reick, from where the Laubegast headquarters on the banks of the Elbe is supplied.

But it is not only the flood experiences that make the company special: it is one of the oldest bakeries in Dresden. Founded in 1865, master confectioner Christiane Steiner and her brother Norbert Wiederhold are now the fifth generation to run the bakery. Their twelve-year-old son also wants to become a baker. According to the master bakers, the employees appreciate the family environment. In addition to the more than 30 types of bread rolls that the company bakes every day, preparations for Advent have now begun. They have already put 400 stollen in the oven. If you ask Christiane Siemank about her biggest worries, she says: "Until the day before yesterday, it was the flood." But thanks to the move and the city's flood protection, the water has - fortunately - stayed far away. Only one concern remains: "The bureaucracy - why do they need all these figures?" she asks. Jörg Dittrich, President of the skilled crafts sector, can also tell you a thing or two about this. He wants the new state government to "reduce bureaucracy". What does that mean in detail? Public procurement law, supply chain law, working time recording - he gives examples.