Collectively agreed salaries for trainees are rising. Thanks to a 6.4 percent increase in collectively agreed training allowances in the current 2024/25 training year, there are now only a few sectors in which trainees receive less than €1,000 per month in their first year under the collective agreement. According to the results of a recent study by the Hans Böckler Foundation, the situation remains worse in areas where there are no collective agreements.

Salaries vary greatly depending on the industry, region and year of training: from €710 per month in the first year of training in hairdressing in North Rhine-Westphalia to €1,650 per month in the fourth year of training for commercial trainees in the main construction industry in western Germany.

The highest monthly training allowances, exceeding €1,200, are paid in the first year of training in the following sectors:

• Nursing professions covered by collective agreements in the public sector at federal and local level, with €1,416, and at state level, with €1,381
• n the private banking sector, with a national average of €1,350
• In the public sector at federal and local level, with a national average of €1,293 and €1,237 at state level
• At Deutsche Bahn AG, the national average is €1,275
• In the textile industry in Baden-Württemberg, the average is €1,270
•  In the metal and electrical industry in Baden-Württemberg, the average is €1,267, and in Saxony, it is €1,234
• In the confectionery industry in eastern Germany: €1,227
• In the insurance industry: €1,205 nationwide
• In the chemical industry in the North Rhine collective bargaining area: €1,204

Training allowances continue to rise faster than regular collective wage increases for employees.