Construction costs are currently skyrocketing

.. You may be right about IT, all the 9 to 5 office jobs are fought over by everyone

well, we also don’t have overstaffing, but start early with internships we offer and through training, etc.
Tax advisors apparently have by far the biggest problems finding employees, worse than in skilled trades (source: hearsay from our tax advisor)

... But in the field of worldwide special plant engineering? Gloomy, very gloomy regarding young talent.
That’s how we earn a large part of the money in Germany. You only buy plants here if we also install them at the customer’s site. If no one does that anymore... then you buy it from whoever does.

My sister works at a company that does special plant engineering (packaging machines). They currently have no major problems in this regard, rather management problems (from her point of view ;-) You just have to be really good to assert yourself, that's just how it is in "predatory capitalism"
And when considering the “TCO” with Eastern European employees employed, the 1/3 salary no longer looks good at all. Especially with half the work speed (nothing against Eastern Europeans, I didn’t make that claim ;-)

Ok once again construction costs: I recently had a garden landscaper (from England?!) here, who gave me an immediate offer to pave the driveway with grass pavers (20mx3m). Wanted 10,000 EUR. I tried not to laugh and said he should leave me a flyer. Can that really be true?! Or did he expect me to negotiate? My neighbor now also wants to inquire about the driveway. Actually, we wanted to do it in EL, but we just don’t get around to it.

Have you already laid gravel? Material for concrete, ~50m curbstones and 60sqm grass pavers shouldn’t cost more than 1500€, the rest would be labor. I would offer you that for 9990€ ;)

For the 2-3 trips to a soccer game/concert/New Year's Eve party/... you can buy a single ticket or day ticket. You probably pay less than the parking fee at the event location and can benefit from the existing infrastructure. Whoever uses it regularly gets a volume discount. Like so often in life.

I'm not really concerned about the comparison to driving a car, and it's not really about me personally. Sure, 16 trips a month don't break me. The "I" I wrote was meant representatively.
What about the single mother call center agent who barely managed to find a somewhat affordable apartment in the outskirts for herself and her two children and has to go to the office twice a week for her 25-hour job (she can do the rest of it working from home). For her, a monthly pass is not worth it and those 100 EUR really hit her hard at the end of the month. Then if a pediatrician or gynecologist or something else comes up (check-up appointment + follow-up), she’s out another 15-20 EUR extra. That’s what I mean.
You can get volume discounts on bulk goods, but for individual private transport, I see it economically a bit more nuanced and socially I don’t see it at all.
But enough about that topic.

I still have two questions:
1. Has anyone here on the forum recently experienced the problem that a certain advertisement (O2) completely redirects away from the forum? It only happens on my phone and I don’t know if it’s really the forum or my phone (malware?).
2. Construction costs: Does anyone have current paver prices per m² including material and substructure?

Have you already laid gravel?
Material for concrete, ~50m curbstones and 60sqm grass pavers shouldn’t be more expensive than 1500€, the rest would then be labor. I would offer it to you for 9990€.

Sort of, there is recycling material, but gravel is still missing and the recycling probably needs to be leveled again.
Yes, I also had to hold back my laughter because of the costs.
You still won’t get the contract. :P

What do I see pessimistically? I am not prophesying the end of the world. But I consider it an illusion that the promise "children should have it better than their parents" will continue to hold. I don't know where you get your optimism from, but the young talent we get... when we get something "useful," it makes me very sad. No drive, no "passion for the job"... You might be right about IT, everyone fights over the 9 to 5 office jobs. But in the field of worldwide special plant construction? Bleak, very bleak when it comes to young talent. We earn a large part of our money in Germany only through this. Plants are only purchased here if we also build them at the customer's site. If no one does that anymore... then they buy from whoever does.

Is it really the applicants' fault or perhaps yours? I recently had a conversation with a medium-sized company owner who complains that only leftovers apply to him and that they are too dumb to perform the simplest office tasks. When asked about pay, he said: "They should be glad they get minimum wage!" When asked about the monthly salary, he said: "It varies every month; I pay according to actual hours worked. In February, for example, they work fewer days than in July!" When asked about training: "What am I supposed to train them on extensively? I've explained it once. Then I can expect the new employee to be able to do it. After all, they are paid for it." To this day, he can't explain why he doesn't find good new employees and why turnover in the company is so high... What do I want to say with this? It's not always just the applicants' fault. Often, it’s also on the company and how it designs its recruiting and onboarding. If recruiting is already crap, why should I apply there? I recently saw in a documentary the owner of a carpentry business who looks for employees in a target-appropriate way using various social media channels. He searches for civil engineers on Xing and apprentices via TikTok. At the same time, he offers his employees benefits like proper company pension schemes, opportunities for further training, and an "apprentice taxi" to the company and back home in the evening. He receives many and also good applications. Many companies still haven't understood that the labor market has changed in recent decades. The "hire-and-fire" policy combined with "I first hire on a fixed-term contract without reason for one year and then extend for another year to see whether I take the employee permanently" has left its mark, and applicants now look more closely at where they apply. It starts with the working atmosphere, continues with the working conditions, and does not end with appreciation, which among other things is expressed in reasonable pay.

Is it really the applicants' fault or maybe still yours? I recently had a conversation with a medium-sized company owner who complains that only leftovers apply to him and then are too dumb to perform the simplest office tasks. When asked about pay, he said: "They should be glad to get minimum wage!" When asked about the monthly salary, he said: "Every month is different, I pay according to actual hours. In February, for example, they work fewer days than in July!" When asked about training: "What kind of thorough training should I give? I explained it once. Then I can expect the new person to be able to do it. After all, they're paid for it." He still can't explain why he doesn’t find good new employees and why turnover in the company is so high... What do I want to say with this? It’s not always just the applicants’ fault. Often it’s also the company and how it organizes its recruiting and onboarding. If recruiting is already rubbish, why should I apply there? I recently saw in a documentary the owner of a carpentry business who searches for employees tailored to the target group via various social media channels. On Xing for civil engineers and on TikTok for trainees. At the same time, he offers his employees benefits like decent occupational pension schemes, opportunities for further training, and an "apprentice taxi" to and from the company in the evenings. He receives many and also good applications. Many companies have not yet understood that the job market has changed over the past decades. The "hire-and-fire" policy combined with "I first hire on a one-year contract with no objective reason, then extend it for another year to see if I want to keep the employee permanently" has left its mark, and applicants now look more closely where they apply. It starts with the working atmosphere, continues with the working conditions, and does not end without appreciation, which among other things is expressed in reasonable pay.

Respect, great contribution. I see it exactly the same way!

By then I'll be ashes anyway.

Off topic: Don't say stuff like that. ;-)