EU member states elevated their complete defence spending by over 30% between 2021 and 2024, rising from €214 billion to an estimated €326 billion, in line with the European Defence Company.
Europe’s defence trade can be going through rising labour wants, resulting in an increase in job postings. Hiring has elevated sharply throughout Europe’s defence sector in comparison with the broader job market, in line with world hiring platform Certainly.
Defence-related job postings have outpaced general market traits since 2022. France, Germany, and the UK stay the principle hubs for defence recruitment.
Safety has lengthy been a key precedence for Europe, nevertheless it has taken on better significance because the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Extra lately, tensions have additionally escalated within the Center East as a result of battle involving Israel and Iran. Job postings knowledge suggests that every one have an effect on Europe’s defence trade, in line with Certainly.
Following a pandemic-driven decline in 2020, job postings in each the defence sector and the general labour market initially recovered at an identical tempo. Nonetheless, their paths diverged sharply starting in early 2022, across the time of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.
General job postings peaked in July 2022 at 46% above their 2021 common. The index used for this knowledge units 2021 common month-to-month postings at 100. Since that peak, general postings have declined.
In distinction, defence-related postings continued to rise, reaching twice their 2021 common by November 2022, when the index peaked at 201.
Though postings within the defence sector have eased considerably since then, they remained 41% above 2021 ranges as of Might 2025. The broader job market, by comparability, has dipped barely beneath its 2021 benchmark, standing at 99.5 index factors.
The businesses included within the evaluation are principally private-sector employers. Roles inside the armed forces usually are not thought-about.
“Jobseeker curiosity within the defence sector has elevated because the outbreak of the struggle, notably in Germany, the place search exercise spiked in early 2022 and has remained elevated,” Virginia Sondergeld, economist at Certainly Hiring Lab, informed Euronews Enterprise.
“This illustrates how geopolitical occasions can form public notion of the sector and doubtlessly entice new expertise.”
She famous that sustaining and increasing a talented workforce in defence requires long-term public funding.
“If such funding continues, the sector might expertise a structural rise in its relevance inside the labour market,” she added.
France dominates defence job postings in Europe
France accounts for the biggest share of European job postings from main defence corporations, with about 43% as of Might 2025. That is down from 57% in early 2020.
Germany and the UK every make up 17% of postings. The share from different European nations has grown from 7% to 23% on this interval. That is “reflecting geographical diversification of defence funding and hiring” in line with Certainly economist Alexandre Judes and Virginia Sondergeld.
France, Germany, and the UK every have giant and specialised defence industries. Judes and Sondergeld defined that France goals for full-spectrum autonomy by way of corporations like Dassault, Thales, and Safran. Germany, residence to Rheinmetall and Hensoldt, performs a key function in NATO’s future land techniques and the UK has a robust presence in naval and aerospace platforms by way of BAE Methods. As these companies increase manufacturing and innovation, demand for expert expertise in software program, engineering, and manufacturing continues to develop.
A number of main European defence companies function throughout borders. Corporations like Airbus Defence and Area, MBDA, and KNDS lead joint European programmes in aerospace, missile techniques, and armoured automobiles.
Within the UK, jobseeker curiosity in defence rose barely after the Ukraine struggle started in 2022 however has stayed principally flat since. In distinction, curiosity has grown in France and Germany.
“Within the UK, the defence sector was already comparatively giant, and coverage modifications had been extra incremental, attracting much less public consideration and certain leading to smaller shifts in jobseeker notion,” Virginia Sondergeld mentioned.
In France, defence-related searches reached 0.18% in April 2025, up from 0.08% in 2021. Germany noticed the sharpest early enhance. The share of searches jumped from 0.026% in January 2022 to 0.084% in March 2022 and has stayed excessive.
Regardless of these modifications, Certainly economists level out that defence stays a distinct segment area. Even in nations with rising curiosity, defence-related searches nonetheless make up a small share of complete job searches.
Software program growth and engineering lead in defence hiring
Software program growth leads within the UK, making up 14.5% of complete job postings by main European defence corporations. Its share is 11.9% in France and 10.2% in Germany.
In France, industrial engineering ranks highest, accounting for 19% of postings. Engineering, manufacturing, and administration roles are additionally key throughout defence companies.
Sondergeld mentioned that present market circumstances might favour defence recruiters as postings in conventional tech roles have declined sharply throughout Europe in recent times.
Position of rise in defence spending
Dr. Calle Håkansson, a researcher on the Swedish Defence Analysis Company, defined that the rise in defence job postings and hiring is clearly linked to rise in defence spending throughout Europe. Defence corporations—from main prime contractors to smaller subcontractors— have to recruit extra personnel to satisfy rising demand in gentle of the deteriorating safety state of affairs in Europe and globally.
He identified that world army expenditure has really seen its steepest rise because the finish of the Chilly Conflict in line with latest figures from Stockholm Worldwide Peace Analysis Institute (SIPRI).
“This growth is clearly impacting the defence trade throughout Europe, with steadily rising order books and elevated demand for manufacturing capability which consequently impacts hirings inside the sector,” Håkansson informed Euronews Enterprise.
He said that rising safety considerations in Europe have elevated curiosity in careers inside the defence sector.
“For instance, in Sweden, the defence firm Saab has lately turn out to be one of the crucial engaging employers amongst newly graduated engineers,” he added.
Dr. Caroline Batka, senior army analyst at Comenius College, emphasised that Europe’s defence trade is increasing as NATO has proposed elevating defence spending to above 2% of GDP.