As of June 30, 2024, Germany had 1.96 million civil servants, judges, and soldiers. Although the latter two groups are not considered civil servants in the traditional sense, they are treated similarly under civil service law. According to data released by the Federal Statistical Office, these three groups, in total, accounted for a substantial third (36.4 percent) of all public service employees. The majority of all public sector workers (63.6 percent) are employed under private law contracts as employees.
Sectorally, the greatest concentration of civil servants, judges, and soldiers was in general and vocational schools, accounting for 35.6 percent (or 696,000 people). Nearly a fifth (19.1 percent, or 373,000) were situated in Public Safety and Order-a category encompassing federal and state police, as well as fire protection and local administrative offices. Other major sectors include defense (10.0 percent, or 195,000), financial administration (which includes tax and customs offices, at 8.6 percent, or 167,000), political leadership and central administration (8.5 percent, or 167,000), and legal protection (covering courts, public prosecutions, and correctional facilities, at 6.5 percent, or 126,000).
Over the past decade, the number of civil servants, judges, and soldiers has risen by 5.8 percent, reaching 1.96 million from 1.85 million recorded on June 30, 2014. In contrast, the number of public sector employees (workers) has grown much faster, increasing by 22.1 percent from 2.80 million in 2014 to 3.42 million in 2024. Consequently, the total number of public service employees increased by 15.6 percent over the same period, rising from 4.65 million at the end of June 2014 to 5.38 million at the end of June 2024.
The growth in personnel was most noticeable in general and vocational schools (+52,000), in the Public Safety and Order sector (+46,000), and in political leadership and central administration (+22,000). Conversely, numbers declined in the Transport and Communication sector (-26,000), due partly to the privatization of the Deutsche Bundesbahn. Another area that saw a reduction was Social Security, Family, and Youth, where the decline was attributed largely to the Federal Employment Agency no longer issuing civil service appointments.
In terms of jurisdiction, only a little less than a fifth (19.0 percent) of these personnel work for the federal government. The vast majority (70.1 percent) are employed by the federal states (Länder), while almost one tenth (9.7 percent) work at the municipal level. This distribution largely reflects how educational services are organized at the state level, where civil servants frequently hold positions as teachers.
Across the states, the ratio of civil servants to employees in schools varies significantly. As of June 30, 2024, 638,000 civil servants worked in general and vocational schools at the state level-representing nearly three quarters (74.1 percent) of all employees in state-run schools. Notably high shares of civil servants in schools were recorded in Baden-Württemberg (92.4 percent), Saarland (88.7 percent), and Lower Saxony (85.2 percent). Conversely, statisticians reported significantly lower proportions in Berlin (28.2 percent), Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (30.4 percent), and Saxony (33.4 percent).
