Reframing the Skilled Worker: The Psychological and Institutional Origins of the German Skills Machine

Abstract

In 1926, shortly after the German economy had emerged from the fog of post-World War I hyperinflation, the principle employers’ groups, the National Association of German Industry and the Association of German Employers’ Organizations, founded a Working Committee on Vocational Training. The establishment of this body represented a decisive turning point in the emergence of the highly skilled modern German work force. By standardizing vocational definitions, training schemes, and national qualifying exams, the Committee and its successors helped German apprentices and employers overcome previous disincentives to investing in worker training.