View from India: Upcoming job openings, new silver lining for economy

The third quarter of 2023 carries hints of positive sentiments as far as the job market goes. And this is despite news of layoffs and anticipated global economic slowdown, as the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey reveals.

Nearly half the employers surveyed expect to increase their staffing levels. However, 13 per cent anticipate a decrease in hiring intent and 34 per cent do not anticipate any change, resulting in a seasonally adjusted Net Employment Outlook of +36 per cent. When compared to the same period last year, the hiring sentiments have declined by 15 per cent. Still, there is a growth of 6 percentage-points when compared to the last quarter. Hiring markets in India rank second after Australia in the APAC (Asia-Pacific) region, and fifth globally.

The ManpowerGroup surveyed employers on their outlook towards green jobs. Here are some of the key findings. Companies in the IT, Technology, Telecom, Communications and Media sector report a hiring outlook of +47 per cent, of which +89 per cent are currently hiring for green jobs, while the Financial and Real Estate sector report a hiring outlook of +41 per cent outlook with +85 per cent focused on green job hiring.

The green job recruitment takes few parameters into account. As a starting point, one needs to scout around for qualified workers; existing skills need to be evaluated and, where required, updated with appropriate upskilling and training programmes. Some of the current skills could be put to use with some tweaking or fine-tuning. Whatever the case may be, all this needs to be done for better business outcomes. Return on Investment forms the crux of the effort. “India is one of the significant IT talent hubs for tech companies across the globe. Coupled with that, is the government’s continuous reinforcement in the semiconductor industry, both of which is fortifying the IT sector as the dominant player for growth in the Indian job market,” said Sandeep Gulati, managing director, ManpowerGroup India and Middle East. Furthermore, demand during the festival season is expected to fuel the overall economy; this will largely impact the temp staffing industry as well as the gig economy.

The hiring scenario is not the same for all sectors. IT and Technology sector employers report the strongest hiring intentions with a Net Employment Outlook of +47 per cent. This is followed by Finance, Insurance and Real Estate with +41 per cent, and Healthcare and Life Sciences with +40 per cent. Further to this, in 2022 four new industries joined the existing sectors: Primary Production, IT and Technology, Not for Profit, and Restaurants and Hotels.

Going beyond the report, the job market appears to be opening up for other sectors. This point can be inferred from the fact that the government is diversifying the PLI scheme. PLI, or production linked incentive, is an initiative of the government towards creating employment opportunities for all. The PLI scheme has brought around 14 sectors under its umbrella. By way of explanation, the Union Budget 2020-2021 has given its approval to introduce the PLI Scheme by announcing an outlay of 1.97 lakh crore rupees (1.97tn rupees, or approximately £9.6bn).

Last month, VFI reported that the Production Linked Incentive Scheme 2.0 is boosting the IT hardware industry. A sum of 17,000 crore rupees (170bn rupees, or approximately £1.6bn) has been allocated towards the same.

Now toys, leather and new-age e-bikes are set to join the bandwagon of the PLI scheme. These segments come within the budgetary allocation of 1.97 lakh crore rupees that had been set aside when the PLI was initiated. Toys, leather and new age e-bikes are expected to create large-scale employment, as things don’t stop at just production. The entire ecosystem needs to be linked. Distribution, marketing and after-sales service are some of the immediate thoughts that come to mind. Of course, there could be possibilities of a tertiary market as the demand-supply begins to pick up.

The intent is that the minimum production in India through PLI Schemes is expected to be over US$500bn in five years. The vision is to enhance India's manufacturing capabilities, attract investments and scale-up India’s visibility in the export market, all in sync with Atmanirbhar Bharat or self-reliant India.

Let us hope that the employment opportunities in various sectors strengthen the domestic market, build a robust ecosystem and lower the dependence on exports. All this could contribute towards the economy.