Female workforce grows in automotive manufacturing as tech adoption surges

Automation, skilled talent requirements, along with active measures to improve gender representation drive female hiring in the automobile industry

Female workers are making significant strides on shop floors and in traditionally male-dominated roles at automakers, driven by the adoption of advanced technologies in manufacturing processes that demand precision handling, according to a report by the Economic Times (ET). Aside from technology, automobile companies have also taken active measures to hire more women. This is especially evident in factories undergoing automation and adopting new robotics, electric systems, and electronics technologies.

Industry giants like Tata Motors have over 6,500 female shop floor technicians across its manufacturing facilities, producing electric cars, SUVs, and heavy commercial vehicles. The automaker assembles its flagship Harrier and Safari SUVs with a 3,000-strong all-women team at its Pune plant. Moreover, the company has over 3,700 women shop floor technicians involved in assembling commercial vehicles across various plants.

Similarly, Hero MotoCorp employs 3,500 women on its shop floors, with assembly lines led by women at factories in Tirupati, Haridwar, and Neemrana in Rajasthan. The company aims to increase the female workforce to 30 per cent by 2030, focusing on recruitment drives, learning programs, mentoring, and networking opportunities.

Meanwhile, at MG Motor India, women make up 34 per cent of the 3,001-strong workforce at its manufacturing unit in Halol, Gujarat.

To attract and support female workers, companies offer benefits like safe transportation, medical coverage for IVF, and gender-neutral parental leave. Hero MotoCorp provides crèche facilities and a buddy system for returning mothers, while Mercedes-Benz India ensures designated personal spaces and conducts monthly catch-ups to address concerns and gather feedback for improvement.

In the future, automotive firms are aiming for 30-50 per cent representation of female workers on their shop floors, ET added. This could significantly contribute to further improving the overall female workforce participation.

In October 2023, the Female Labour Force Participation Rate (FLFPR) increased by 4.2 percentage points to reach 37 per cent in 2023. Deloitte’s Blue Collar Workforce Trends Report 2023, released around the same time, reported female blue-collar workforce participation at eight per cent (1 in 12), compared to just two per cent decades ago. The report also highlighted that life sciences, automotive, and engineering design were leading in the gender diversity ratio. This was driven by a high degree of automation, skilled talent requirement, premium pay, as well as a shift in mindset.