The figure was 133,000 more than in December 2021, but 439,000 fewer than in January 2021, the Federal Employment Agency announced in the southern city of Nuremberg on Tuesday.

The unemployment rate rose from 5.1 to 5.4 per cent.

“The labour market has started well in 2022. The number of unemployed people increased in January, but by far not as much as usual,” said Daniel Terzenbach, member of the executive board of the Federal Employment Agency (BA).

The number of unemployed is 37,000 higher than in January 2020, when the coronavirus crisis in Germany had not yet had an impact on public life. For its January statistics, the BA used data material received up to January 13.

Short-time work – the government furlough scheme, whereby workers are sent home by a company in financial distress, but do not lose their jobs while the government pays a percentage of their salary – has risen significantly again.

According to the latest data, companies reported 286,000 short-time jobs from January 1 to 26.

According to the agency, the notifications came mainly from the retail and hospitality sectors. Experience shows, however, that less short-time work is actually used than is reported.

Actual data is only available up to November. In November 2021, short-time allowances had been paid to 574,000 people. At the peak of the coronavirus crisis, the Federal Employment Agency had paid this assistance to almost 6 million people in April 2020.