Sushma Ramachandran

A ray of light has suddenly appeared on the jobs front as a recent study says prospects are bright for blue collar workers in the current fiscal. In fact, it says demand for blue collar jobs has already reached pre-Covid levels, for the first time since the pandemic began in March last year. The news is extremely heartening as till now employment data has been showing a declining graph especially during  April-June when the second Covid surge caused widespread economic disruption.

The study of the blue collar workforce by a human capital management platform, Betterplace, indicates that the green shoots of economic recovery are strengthening as companies are looking to ramp up manpower. Blue collar workers are those engaged in manual labour or in manufacturing industries as opposed to white collar jobs which imply working behind a desk. 

Even while considering the survey’s positive implications, one must keep in mind that overall unemployment data continues to be on the rise. The Centre for Monitoring Indian Eonomy estimates the unemployment rate to be 7.9 per cent as on August 24 as against 7.14 per cent on July 24.  Urban joblessness continues to be at a high of 9.3 per cent as against 7.3 per cent for rural areas.

The Betterplace survey of blue collar jobs is a more focused one based on data from 1600 corporates.  It expects on the basis of its data, that seven million blue collar jobs will be created in the current fiscal, of which half will be in the states of Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The industries where these fresh jobs will be available include information technology, ecommerce, logistics, FMCG and retail.

The survey’s findings are logical as in the case of an economic revival, the most industrialized states will be the first to return to normalcy. And these four states are among those with a high concentration of business and industrial operations. Maharashtra, for instance, is one of the most highly industrialized states with its capital, Mumbai, being the country’s financial and commercial hub. It is no wonder then that the survey expects as much as 17 per cent of the new jobs to be located in this state. As for Telangana and Karnataka, both are centres for the IT industry with Hyderabad and Bengaluru having emerged as headquarters for numerous global tech giants. Tamil Nadu has equally become a manufacturing hub for a wide range of business and industry.

The survey has also found that inter-state migration has reduced, indicating that jobs are available for a longer duration, and eliminating the need for migration. Digitalisation, simplified labour codes and the rise of the gig economy are also highlighted in the survey as being responsible for the creation of increased jobs. Among the categories cited as being in demand owing to the post-Covid economic recovery are delivery executives, drivers, security personnel and medical representatives.

One of the interesting highlights of the survey is that increased mobile and internet penetration has led to workers adopting digital tools to locate jobs that suit their skills and locations. Companies, on their part, are also using smart data analytics to assess their needs for hiring.

The significance of this survey cannot be overestimated at this stage as the critical element in the country’s economic revival is the need for jobs growth, especially for those at the bottom of the pyramid. One of the most devastating aspects of the pandemic and subsequent lockdown in March 2020 was the loss of livelihoods to millions of people in the informal sector. The extent to which the informal economy was supported by contract and casual labour became visible when innumerable workers and their families began marching home from urban to rural areas during the lockdown. It was then that both central and state governments recognized the need to provide special facilities to those who had been rendered jobless due to the health emergency.

In fact, the first step has now been taken in trying to assess the size of the unorganized sector with the launch of the eShram portal which aims to maintain a database of workers in the unorganized sector. The National Database of Unorganised Workers as the eShram portal is described will enable such workers to register themselves with the help of their Aadhar card and other identification documents. This will, in turn, ease delivery of welfare scheme benefits to those registered in the portal.

It will also help in providing skill-based jobs to those registering on the portal. The current estimate is that there are 38 crore workers in the unorganized sector. But the portal, if it succeeds, will be able to provide a more precise idea of the number of blue collar workers in the informal economy.

The Betterplace survey gives a hint that economic revival is on the horizon. If corporates around the country are planning to step up manpower recruitment, it is clear that business and industrial activity is likely to return to normal in the near future. What is important to recognize now is that the large numbers of blue collar workers are the ones running the wheels of the economy. It is thus essential to get a better idea of their numbers as well as their skill sets so that policies can be evolved to support them. It is here that the new eShram portal can play a vital role. It should be used to match skills of workers with the jobs available anywhere in the country. Digital technology can play a pivotal role in ensuring that those who need jobs are directed to public and private organisations that need workers. It can only be hoped that this new facility is used effectively to promote both creation and sustainability of jobs in all economic sectors.