New Delhi:

A new report reveals that 72 per cent of employers across India intend to hire freshers in the latter half of 2024. This upward trend in hiring intent is based on a comprehensive survey of over 603 companies nationwide, reflecting a 4 per cent increase from the previous half-year and a notable 7 per cent rise compared to the same period in 2023, a report by TeamLease EdTech said. 

“The increase in hiring intent for freshers is an encouraging sign. It reflects growing confidence among employers and presents valuable opportunities for fresh talent entering the workforce,” Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO of TeamLease EdTech, said. 

India’s unemployment rate has declined to 3.1 per cent as per the latest National Statistical Office (NSO) data, though challenges persist for graduates and freshers seeking employment.

The report says that industries such as e-commerce, tech startups, engineering, infrastructure, and retail are leading the charge in fresher hiring. Bengaluru tops the list, with 74 per cent of employers indicating plans to bring on new graduates, followed by Mumbai at 60 per cent and Chennai at 54 per cent.

In terms of specific roles, the demand for Full Stack Developers, SEO Executives, Digital Sales Associates, and UI/UX Designers remains high. According to the report, employers are increasingly seeking candidates with specialized skills in cybersecurity, cloud computing, data analytics, and search engine optimization.

“The need of the hour is to constantly learn, not just for freshers but also for managers and employees as workplaces undergo transformation,” Mr Rooj said. 

To address the skills gap, 70 per cent of employers surveyed recommended enhancing academic curricula with experiential learning, while 62 per cent advocated for stronger partnerships between industry and academia. 

The share of workers with regular wage increased since 2004, with the country creating three million regular jobs annually till 2017 and five million jobs between 2017 and 2019, according to “State of Working India 2023: Social Identities and Labour Market Outcomes”, a report prepared by a group of economists and researchers with the Azim Premji University.

The report, released here on Wednesday, however, added that since 2019, the pace of regular wage jobs creation decreased due to economic slowdown and the pandemic. The researchers said only 6% of these jobs provided any kind of social security — including a health insurance or an accidental care insurance. The report was based on the data sourced from National Statistical Organisation’s surveys, census reports and periodic labour force surveys and such government sources.

The number of men working in such regular jobs, where salaries are provided on a fixed date in a month or in one or two weeks, has increased from 18% to 25% over the years and from 10% to 25% in the case of women.

Caste-based segregation

The report said in 2004, over 80% of sons of casual wage workers were themselves in casual employment. “This was the case for both SC/ST workers and other castes. For non-SC/ST castes, this fell from 83% to 53% by 2018 and incidence of better-quality work such as regular salaried jobs increased. It fell for SC/ST castes as well, but to a lesser extent [86% to 76%],” the study said, pointing out towards a decrease in caste-based segregation. “In waste management and sewerage, over-representation of SCs decreased to 1.6 times in 2011 before increasing slightly again,” it pointed out.

The report said gender-based earnings disparities have also reduced in the last 20 years. “In 2004, salaried women workers earned 70% of what men earned. By 2017, the gap had reduced, and women earned 76% of what men did. Since then, the gap has remained constant till 2021-22,” the researchers said.

Post-COVID, the report said the unemployment rate was lower than it was pre-COVID, for all education levels. “But it remains above 15% for graduates and more worryingly it touches a huge 42% for graduates under 25 years,” it said, adding that the rate of women unemployment was rising due to a “distress-led increase in self-employment”. “Before COVID, 50% of women were self-employed. After COVID this rose to 60%. As a result, earnings from self-employment declined in real terms over this period. Even two years after the 2020 lockdown, self-employment earnings were only 85% of what they were in the April-June 2019 quarter,” the report added.