Good news: India Inc to offer 70 lakh blue collar jobs

• Follow

The Indian corporate sector is going to generate around 70 lakh jobs by the end of FY22 as several industries are witnessing an upsurge in operation after the disruptions caused by Covid-19 pandemic. According to a survey by blue-collar employee management startup Betterplace, the jobs are expected to be created by the end of this fiscal year. This is due to a surge in demand in certain sectors following festive buying, increased consumption and resumption of business activities, according to a report in The Economic Times.

The findings of the pan-India survey by Betterplace show that the demand for blue-collar employees has surpassed pre-Covid times for the first time in close to 15 months. Factors like recovery in demand, economic activities picking up speed and nationwide vaccination plan have prompted workforce consolidation across various sectors, the report mentioned.

Rising demand for workers

The demand for blue-collar workers has gone up by 4% from 2019 and by 37% since the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak in early 2020. This report is based on data collected from over 1,600 companies across India.

Betterplace co-founder and CEO Pravin Agarwala said that there is a heightened demand for blue-collar workers in the country as the economy is rising from the Covid-19 related restrictions and the business activities are resuming. He added that the economy is back on the track and companies are now far better prepared as compared to what they were during the first wave last year.

According to the survey, close to 50% of the jobs are expected to be generated in the states of Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Led by India’s financial capital Mumbai, Maharashtra tops the list with a share of 17% of the overall demand. The blue-collar roles that are in demand are of drivers, housekeepers, warehouse workers, retail sales executives, customer care executives, medical sales representatives, delivery executives, sewing machine operators and security and facility management personnel.

Gig economy expected to grow

The Centre’s efforts in revving economic activity and growth in demand will lead to a surge in hiring though the pace of vaccination will continue to be a critical factor to sustain the momentum.

The gig workforce by the end of FY22 is expected to increase to 175% and the gig economy could serve up to 90 million jobs in the long run.