New jobs being created in defence at fastest rate since Cold War

A Financial Times article last week reported on the hiring plans of 20 large and medium-sized European and US defence companies, and found they are looking to recruit tens of thousands of people this year.  Ten of the companies surveyed intend to add 37,000 new positions; an increase of almost 10 per cent.

Why are there so many new jobs in defence now?

Governments have increased their spending on military equipment in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as other ongoing conflicts and insecurity. ASD Secretary General Jan Pie is quoted in the article pointing out that “since the end of the Cold War, this is the most intense period for the defence sector with the highest increase in order volume in a rather short period of time.”

Antonio Liotti, chief people officer at Italian defence manufacturer and ASD member Leonardo, said Leonardo was engaged in “an intense search for new hires, even more intense than during previous conflicts such as Iraq or Afghanistan”. Leonardo intends to hire 6,000 new employees by the end of 2024, and expects to recruit between 8,000 to 10,000 additional people between 2025 and 2028. 

Thales of France, known for the Starstreak missile, has recruited 9,000 people in the past three years, boosting its defence operations workforce by 11% to a total of 81,000 employees.

BAE Systems has significantly ramped up its recruitment to support long-term projects such as the Global Combat Air Programme. The company has doubled its early-career intake over the past five years and plans to hire around 2,700 apprentices and graduates this year, as well as thousands of experienced professionals.

MBDA plans to hire over 2,600 people this year, which is 17% of its current workforce of 15,000. MBDA’s air-launched missiles, such as the Storm Shadow and Scalp, have been used extensively in Ukraine.

Rheinmetall of Germany is looking to hire hundreds of employees who formerly worked in the automotive industry; and Dassault Aviation, the maker of the Rafale fighter aircraft, is also steadily increasing its workforce as it plans for the future, recognising the long manufacturing cycles in the sector.

What kind of jobs are being created in the defence industry?

The article notes that nuclear-related skills are in significant demand. The UK government has launched a nuclear skills task force to train the tens of thousands of workers needed across the country’s civil nuclear and military programmes. The Nuclear Skills Delivery Group forecasts that 30,000 additional roles will be needed in the nuclear defence sector between now and 2030.

The impact of digitalisation is also evident in the hiring plans of defence companies. Of the 8,000 to 10,000 additional workers Leonardo expects to take on between 2025 and 2028, many will be industrial and software engineers.