As employment picks up in India, IT sector lags in competition: Report

Employment conditions in India are finally moving past the critical turn and while the sentiments are upbeat, there are some sectors that have not shown any positive signs, Economic Times stated, citing a new report.

According to the report, the momentum in IT services has slowed down as against the banking and healthcare sectors. A 27 per cent decline in hiring activity was reported in the IT sector as compared to April 2022. 

The mass layoffs witnessed across the Big Tech firms like Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Alphabet were triggered by a slowdown in consumer demand after the Coronavirus pandemic, along with unreliable macroeconomic conditions.

ET citing another report states that in 2023 as many as 696 tech firms have let go of their employees so far. It further mentioned that as of May 18, nearly 197,985 tech workers have lost their jobs, and the number is expected to rise further.

The layoff season in India in 2023 began with Amazon laying off 1,000 employees, followed by Twitter, laying off nearly 90 per cent of its 200-plus staff in India and simultaneously shutting down two of its three offices in the country.

Unemployment trends

India's unemployment rate inched higher in April to 8.11 per cent from 7.8 per cent in March 2023, due to a significant rise in the Labour Participation Rate (LPR). 

Since the mid-pandemic highs, the unemployment rates in India have declined sharply.

Urban vs Rural divide

"After languishing since the pandemic, rural labour participation and employment rates have ticked up in April, as a broader resilience in activity likely drew more back to seek jobs", the report said.

It also mentioned that the labour participation rate in the rural area was much higher as compared to urban areas. Most of the jobs added in April were in rural India, the report added further.