Do soft-skills courses pay for individuals? Evidence from German matched data

Mahdi Gholami; Samuel Muehlemann

doi:10.1186/s40461-026-00210-1

Do soft-skills courses pay for individuals? Evidence from German matched data

Mahdi Gholami^*
, Samuel Muehlemann^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Soft skills are widely promoted as levers for productivity and as enablers for digital and green transitions. Linking soft-skills training courses with German matched employer-employee records for 2010-2020, we examine whether participation in employer-financed non-formal soft-skills training is associated with subsequent labor market outcomes for full-time workers. A staggered event-study design finds no post-training changes in daily wages, span of control, leadership status, or job satisfaction for up to three years. In Germany's frictional labor market, where firms hold considerable monopsony power, this pattern is consistent with two interpretations: either these courses produce relatively small productivity effects, or firms capture part of any productivity gains rather than sharing them through higher pay.JEL classification: J24; J28; J31; M53; I26

Original language	English
Article number	9
Number of pages	20
Journal	Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training
Volume	18
Issue number	1
Early online date	1 Aug 2026
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1186/s40461-026-00210-1
Publication status	Published - 25 Aug 2026

JEL classifications

j24 - "Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity"
j28 - "Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy"
j31 - "Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials"
m53 - Personnel Economics: Training
i26 - Returns to Education

Keywords

Soft skills
Training
Wages
Span of control
Leadership
Job satisfaction
Monopsony
Event study
LABOR-MARKET OUTCOMES
IMPACT
WAGES
PRODUCTIVITY
PERFORMANCE
TRAITS

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10.1186/s40461-026-00210-1Licence: CC BY

Cite this

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title = "Do soft-skills courses pay for individuals? Evidence from German matched data",

abstract = "Soft skills are widely promoted as levers for productivity and as enablers for digital and green transitions. Linking soft-skills training courses with German matched employer-employee records for 2010-2020, we examine whether participation in employer-financed non-formal soft-skills training is associated with subsequent labor market outcomes for full-time workers. A staggered event-study design finds no post-training changes in daily wages, span of control, leadership status, or job satisfaction for up to three years. In Germany's frictional labor market, where firms hold considerable monopsony power, this pattern is consistent with two interpretations: either these courses produce relatively small productivity effects, or firms capture part of any productivity gains rather than sharing them through higher pay.JEL classification: J24; J28; J31; M53; I26",

keywords = "Soft skills, Training, Wages, Span of control, Leadership, Job satisfaction, Monopsony, Event study, LABOR-MARKET OUTCOMES, IMPACT, WAGES, PRODUCTIVITY, PERFORMANCE, TRAITS",

author = "Mahdi Gholami and Samuel Muehlemann",

note = "Data availability Replication codes are available from the corresponding author ([email protected]). The NEPS-SC6-ADIAB microdata can be accessed through the FDZ at the IAB under restricted-use agreements.",

year = "2026",

month = aug,

day = "25",

doi = "10.1186/s40461-026-00210-1",

language = "English",

volume = "18",

journal = "Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training",

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T1 - Do soft-skills courses pay for individuals? Evidence from German matched data

AU - Gholami, Mahdi

AU - Muehlemann, Samuel

N1 - Data availability Replication codes are available from the corresponding author ([email protected]). The NEPS-SC6-ADIAB microdata can be accessed through the FDZ at the IAB under restricted-use agreements.

PY - 2026/8/25

Y1 - 2026/8/25

N2 - Soft skills are widely promoted as levers for productivity and as enablers for digital and green transitions. Linking soft-skills training courses with German matched employer-employee records for 2010-2020, we examine whether participation in employer-financed non-formal soft-skills training is associated with subsequent labor market outcomes for full-time workers. A staggered event-study design finds no post-training changes in daily wages, span of control, leadership status, or job satisfaction for up to three years. In Germany's frictional labor market, where firms hold considerable monopsony power, this pattern is consistent with two interpretations: either these courses produce relatively small productivity effects, or firms capture part of any productivity gains rather than sharing them through higher pay.JEL classification: J24; J28; J31; M53; I26

AB - Soft skills are widely promoted as levers for productivity and as enablers for digital and green transitions. Linking soft-skills training courses with German matched employer-employee records for 2010-2020, we examine whether participation in employer-financed non-formal soft-skills training is associated with subsequent labor market outcomes for full-time workers. A staggered event-study design finds no post-training changes in daily wages, span of control, leadership status, or job satisfaction for up to three years. In Germany's frictional labor market, where firms hold considerable monopsony power, this pattern is consistent with two interpretations: either these courses produce relatively small productivity effects, or firms capture part of any productivity gains rather than sharing them through higher pay.JEL classification: J24; J28; J31; M53; I26

KW - Soft skills

KW - Training

KW - Wages

KW - Span of control

KW - Leadership

KW - Job satisfaction

KW - Monopsony

KW - Event study

KW - LABOR-MARKET OUTCOMES

KW - IMPACT

KW - WAGES

KW - PRODUCTIVITY

KW - PERFORMANCE

KW - TRAITS

U2 - 10.1186/s40461-026-00210-1

DO - 10.1186/s40461-026-00210-1

M3 - Article

SN - 1877-6345

VL - 18

JO - Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training

JF - Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training

IS - 1

M1 - 9

ER -

Do soft-skills courses pay for individuals? Evidence from German matched data

Abstract

JEL classifications

Keywords

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Cite this