"The Labor Market in South Westphalia is Facing Profound Changes"
EFRE project "MARS – Modeling Labor Market Shifts in Südwestfalen" at the Chair of Microeconomics of Chemnitz University of Technology has started
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Prof. Dr. Torsten Heinrich (Chemnitz University of Technology) and Prof. Dr. Svenja Flechtner (University of Siegen) are collaborating on the project. Photo: Chair of Microeconomics -
Funded by EU and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia via EFRE/JTF, the project will run until mid-2029. Graphic: NRW
The Chair of Microeconomics (Prof. Dr. Torsten Heinrich) at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at Chemnitz University of Technology has successfully secured external funding from the EFRE/JTF Regionale program. Together with Prof. Dr. Svenja Flechtner and her team at the University of Siegen, the team at Chemnitz University of Technology will analyze labor market trends in the Südwestfalen reion in Westphalia as part of the project "MARS — Modellierung der Arbeitsmarktverschiebungen in Südwestfalen" (Modeling Labor Market Shifts in South Westphalia). The project has a total budget of over 1.6 million Euros (ca. 0.8 million Euros at Chemnitz University of Technology).
Prof. Heinrich explains: "Labor markets in Germany and Europe are facing major changes driven by the rise of AI, demographic shifts, and missed opportunities for innovation. The Südwestfalen region is among the more strongly affected regions. The MARS project will apply new computational economics methods to empirical labor market modeling in order to develop better forecasts and new strategies for addressing the challenges of the coming years. Collaboration with companies and other regional stakeholders plays a key role in the project."
Prof. Flechtner says: "The labor market in South Westphalia is facing profound changes driven by digitalization and AI, demographic change, skills shortages, and the ecological transformation. MARS therefore focuses not only on what changes can be expected, but also on the scope for shaping these developments in the region. The project combines quantitative labor market modeling with the perspectives of regional businesses, policymakers, and other stakeholders to identify potential developments at an early stage and jointly develop approaches for shaping a sustainable future for the regional labor market."
Funded by EU and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia via EFRE/JTF, the project will run until mid-2029.
(Author: Prof. Dr. Torsten Heinrich)
Mario Steinebach
01.10.2026
