Foundation of the Institute
The IAB was founded on 1 April 1967 with the nomination of its first Director, Dieter Mertens. A month later, with the appointment of its first staff, it commenced work. Initially, there was no legal basis for setting up the Institute within the then Federal Employment Service (Bundesanstalt für Arbeit, BA). The establishment of the Institute was essentially, if not exclusively, triggered by the controversial debate on automation, namely the connection between technical progress on the one hand and economic/social development on the other. At the time, experts feared that there would be considerable redundancies or, at the very least, up till then unseen interruptions in working biographies as a result of the progressive automation of production. In setting up the IAB, the Federal Employment Service aimed at contributing to providing answers to the questions posed by structural change through the provision of well-substantiated research results.
This is why, as early as at the turn of the year 1964/1965, the leadership of the BA began to develop conceptual ideas of what the aims and parameters of labour market and occupational research might look like. These considerations led to the establishment of the task force "Structural Change in the Economy" composed of well-reputed academics and social scientists. This task force developed suggestions regarding the tasks, working methods and structure of labour market research which were subsequently taken up by the Self-government Board of the Federal Employment Service, in particular the committee "Technical Progress and the Labour Market". The committee introduced a work plan at the end of 1965 aimed at establishing the IAB; however it was not until four years later that labour market and occupational research was firmly anchored as the remit of the Federal Employment Service by way of the Employment Promotion Act (Arbeitsförderungsgesetz, AFG) passed in 1969.
The establishment of IAB took place at a time when political powers were keen to underpin social and economic issues as far as possible with scientific fact. The 60s and early 70s in particular were marked by deliberate efforts on the part of various departments of the Federal Administration to carry out research and this led to the emergence of numerous scientific establishments. Examples are the German Youth Institute (Deutsches Jugendinstitut), the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (das Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung), the German Institute of Urban Affairs (Deutsches Institut für Urbanistik) and the Institute for Population Studies (Institut für Bevölkerungswissenschaften) at the Federal Statistical Office (Statistischen Bundesamt). A further expression of the politicians' need for advice was the establishment of the German Council of Economic Experts (Sachverständigenrat) to evaluate economic development as a whole.
Developments in the quality of the research work
In the early days of the Institute – in contrast to today – it was not broad-based policy advice that was in the foreground but rather the task of assisting the placement and advisory units of the Federal Employment Service by providing scientifically substantiated (occupational) forecasts. However the significance of labour market research soon began to grow. This fact was subsequently given a legal base in the Employment Promotion Act (Arbeitsförderungsgesetz, AFG) which defined the research mandate of the IAB in a much more comprehensive way than the Federal Employment Service had intended: labour market research was to lay the scientific foundations for the implementation of labour market policy measures and contribute to their optimization.
To do justice to its research mandate, the IAB set up various different internal research units as early as mid-1967 to cover a broad interdisciplinary spectrum (for instance, macroeconomics, sociology and occupational research). At that time, the focus was on projecting short- and long-term developments in the labour market as well as on the question of the causes for the changes observed both nationally and internationally. The role played by technology in production processes, along with those of qualifications and of particular occupations in respect to the integration of the individual into the labour market, was likewise the subject of important strands of research. In the 90s, macroeconomic policy analysis using the so-called "Sysifo Model" gained in importance. It depicted the impacts of policy measures at the level of the economy as a whole by way of simulations. The result was the emergence of a bundle of strategic measures aimed at increasing employment (Strategiebündel für mehr Beschäftigung) that met with great resonance both within the Self-government Board of the BA and within the political sphere as a whole (such as the Alliance for Jobs, Further Education and Competitiveness – Bündnis für Arbeit, Ausbildung und Wettbewerbsfähigkeit).
Two major long-term surveys were launched at the IAB in the 1990s. Already since 1989, the IAB Job Vacancy Survey has been measuring the development of the aggregated labour demand in a representative and statistically valid way, and conducting detailed research into the recruitment process of establishments. Within the IAB Establishment Panel launched in West Germany back in 1993 and then also in East Germany in 1996, establishments from all economic sectors and of all size classes are interviewed about numerous employment-related issues. Both long-term surveys provide valuable information on the demand side of the labour market still today.
The turn of the millennium brought about a significant organisational change for the IAB: The Institute that had previously been a department of the Head Office of the Federal Employment Agency (BA) obtained the status of a “Special Department”. The internationally comparative research was put into a specific research department, exactly as the issues of education and training. Additionally, the Competence Centre Empirical Methods was established.
During this stage, regional research also reached a new level due to the establishment of a Regional Research Network with a total of 11 locations across Germany. But not only the exchange with the regions was promoted. Since its foundation in 2003, the Research Data Centre (FDZ) of the Federal Employment Agency at the IAB has developed into one of the most significant providers of data for the international research community, as far as the labour market research is concerned. It offers access to confidential micro data of the Federal Employment Agency and the IAB to local and foreign researchers. Thanks to transparent, standardised regulations and technical measures, the FDZ ensures data protection and, at the same time, high analysis potential of the data.
One of the most comprehensive but also controversial reform projects of the German post-war period – the Agenda 2010 – sparked heated public debate in the 2000s. During the development of the four Hartz laws, the IAB provided consultation again. Particularly the labour market measures that initiated fundamental reforms on the institutional and instrumental level of the BA were at the core of the Agenda 2010.
Book Two of the German Social Code (SGB II) that came into force in 2005, which makes up an essential part of the fourth Hartz law, led to the establishment of new research departments at the IAB. These dealt, for instance, with the efficiency and effectiveness of benefits or analysed the low-income segment. The “Labour Market and Social Security” Panel Study (PASS) was also specifically introduced to analyse the effects of SGB II. PASS is an annual household survey that helps to evaluate the effects of transfer benefits receipt on the economic and social situation of the households and individuals affected. The longitudinal examination is also an important data source for the research of poverty in Germany.
As of 1 January 2021, the IAB introduced new forms of cooperation between the organisational units by pooling research and counselling topics as well as tasks into newly created “focus areas”. The ten focus areas reflect the work of the Institute and its topics in their entirety. Eight of these focus areas refer to research in terms of contents, one of them is dedicated to data and methods. Two further focus areas represent science-oriented services. Additionally, the occupational research at the Institute has been further expanded by introducing the junior research group “Occupations and Employment Histories”.
Put to the test
The IAB was subjected to an evaluation by the German Council of Science and Humanities in 2007 and 2018. The major advisory body for science policy of the German Federal Government gave the IAB a very positive assessment on both occasions. “In summary, it can be stated that the IAB is a scientific institution that boasts excellent national reputation and international recognition, and has the potential to assume a leadership role on the European level,” as it was put in the assessment report on the first evaluation published on 12 November 2007.
In 2018, the German Council of Science and Humanities put the IAB to test again and praised its outstanding performance: “The sustainably positive development of the IAB since the last Council evaluation in 2007 merits express commendation. The IAB has managed to consolidate and enhance the high quality of its research and counselling services,” as stated in the assessment report published on 25 January 2019. “The IAB is held in very high regard in the scientific community, and it has very good connections with university and non-university research institutions in the country and abroad.”
The IAB provides highly relevant, sophisticated counselling and information services for the Federal Employment Agency, the Federal Ministry for Labour and Social Affairs, politics and the public, the Council continues, while pointing out the importance of the Institute’s scientific independence. This is the rock on which the high regard in which the IAB is held in politics, administration and science is built.
50 years of the IAB
In 2017, the IAB celebrated a very special jubilee: The research institution has been in existence already for half a century. The Institute marked this occasion with a series of special activities, events and publications throughout the anniversary year. Its highlight was the high-profile expert conference “Changing working world – challenges for politics and research” (Arbeitswelten im Wandel – Herausforderungen für Politik und Forschung) in Berlin. The core of the anniversary conference was a keynote on the topic “Gained years – potential for employees, enterprises and the society” (Gewonnene Jahre – Potenziale für Mitarbeiter, Unternehmen und die Gesellschaft) by Prof. Ursula M. Staudinger from Columbia University, New York, as well as three panels during which renowned researchers from Germany and abroad held lectures on the scientific issues of “Digitalisation of working world”, “Social solidarity” and “Refugee migration”.
During the evening ceremony following the anniversary conference, the IAB’s companions as well as representatives from science, politics and praxis, including the former Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Andrea Nahles, extended their congratulations to the IAB.
Watch the video with the Summary of the anniversary expert conference on the IAB’s YouTube channel. A video of the Keynote by Prof. Ursula M. Staudinger is also available there.
Directorate
Dieter Mertens (from 1967 to 1987)
From 1967 to 1987 Dieter Mertens, a Professor of Economics previously on the staff of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) in Berlin, headed the Institute.
Friedrich Buttler (from 1988 to1994)
In 1988, an economist and former Rector of the University of Paderborn, Friedrich Buttler, became Director and remained in this position until 1994.
Hans-Peter Leikeb (from 1994 to 1997)
After that, there was an interim period during which the affairs of the Institute were provisionally guided for a number of years by the former Head of the Research Department "Short-term Labour Market Forecasts and Research on Working Time" (Kurzfristige Arbeitsmarktvorausschau und Arbeitszeitforschung), Dr Hans-Peter Leikeb.
Gerhard Kleinhenz (from 1997 to 2002)
In 1997, Hans-Peter Leikeb was succeeded by Gerhard Kleinhenz who had previously taught at the University of Passau and in whom a Professor of Economics was once more entrusted with the reins of the Institute. Gerhard Kleinhenz left in autumn 2002.
Jutta Allmendinger (from 2003 to 2007)
Jutta Allmendinger was the first woman and sociologist to become Head of the IAB in early 2003. Previously, she had been Head of the Department of Sociology at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich and Chair of the German Sociological Association (DGS). Professor Allmendinger left the IAB in April 2007, moving on to become President of the Berlin Social Science Research Center (WZB) and to assume a professorship at Humboldt University, also in Berlin.
Joachim Möller (from 2007 to 2018)
As of October 2007, the Institute was headed by the Professor of Economics from Regensburg, Joachim Möller. Previously he had given advice and support to the IAB as a member of the Scientific Advisory Council. Professor Möller retired in October 2018.
Bernd Fitzenberger (since September 2019)
Since September 2019, Bernd Fitzenberger, Professor of Quantitative Labour Economics at Friedrich-Alexander University, Erlangen-Nuremberg, and previously a long-standing member of the Scientific Advisory Council has been the new Director of the Institute.