Bumper German Pay Deals and an Unrubbed Nose in Audi Town

On a sunny afternoon in the hometown of German carmaker Audi AG, a sculpture that allegedly protects against the perils of unemployment isn’t getting much attention.

Instead of lining up to rub the nose of Carl Wilhelm von Heideck, a 19th century military officer and painter, most residents of Ingolstadt are too busy working. The Bavarian city in an area with a jobless rate of 2.3 percent, the lowest in the country, is a symbol of a labor market so tight that wages are headed for the biggest gain in more than two decades.