First, the combination of internal labor markets and the strength of the labor movement is essential to the success of the apprenticeship system. Nearly half of Germany’s workers are represented by labor unions, which strengthens the ability of the workers to retain jobs within their respective companies. This makes it difficult for a German to find a job opening in a labor market in which they do not already participate. An apprenticeship, on the other hand, represents a normal point of entry into the internal labor market; thus it is much more difficult for one to find a job without having completed an apprenticeship. There are also reasons why employers participate in apprentice training. In Germany wage agreements for most industries are negotiated by employer representatives and trade unions. Because of this wage bargaining system, it is difficult for companies to use wages to lure post-apprentices away from the companies where they were trained. In fact, post-apprentices available for hiring are often viewed unfavorably. First, it is possible that the firms that trained the workers did not want to retain them as employees, which implies that the workers were not valuable to the organizations. Secondly, it is possible that the workers themselves chose not to continue employment with the companies that provided training, which in the German system might indicate a lack of worker loyalty. Thus, it is ultimately safer for companies to fill their skill vacancies through internal training rather than by competing in the external labor market.

Another factor responsible for the large number of willing participants in the apprenticeship system involves the positive employer-employee relationships that many attribute to training. Employees often feel a sense of obligation to the company that invested so much into their training, and accordingly plan to remain at the company for a long time. In summary, it is clear that the success of the German dual system is due to the following main factor:

• The participation of all stakeholders in determining the outcomes of the educational system including government, industrial enterprises and academic institutions.
• The inherent integration of the academic instructions and the workplace practices.
• The participation of industries, organizations, government and academic institutions in the development, execution and financial support of this educational system.
• The system is well received by all, including students, thus making the integrated educational training system an integral part of the fabric of the society.