Mumbai: India’s jobs scene — with unemployment at a 45-year high — is looking gloomy with hiring activity slowing across most sectors.
Banks, insurers, auto makers and logistics and infrastructure companies are among those hiring at a slower pace, according to the study by Care Ratings Ltd. that relied on annual reports for the year ended March from nearly 1,000 companies. The services sector, which accounts for a bulk of the economy, was the lone sweet spot that displayed robust jobs growth, the study by the credit assessor showed.
The sluggish pace of hiring lends itself to a vicious cycle in an economy already reeling from weak consumption demand, which has dragged growth down to a five-year low in the March quarter. For Prime Minister Narendra Modi, rising joblessness risks stoking social tensions and tarring India’s image as an attractive investment destination.
Total employment increased from 5.44 million as of March 2017 to 5.78 million in 2018, which is an increase of 6.2%, according to the Care. In the year ended March, that increase was lower at 4.3%, with the total number of employed personnel standing at 6.03 million.
Care said that while sectors like hospitality saw increased outsourcing, there was a decline in headcount for iron, steel and mining companies due to lower growth in production and increased bankruptcy related issues. India’s banking sector boasts of one of highest stressed asset ratios, a factor that has also weighed on hiring.
“Banks have resorted to both outsourcing as well as rationalization — both compulsory and voluntary — to control headcount,” Care said, adding that some weak state-run banks were barred from new hiring because they were ring-fenced while boosting their capital base and bringing down their non-performing loans.
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Sad. One year ago, Minister Jayant Sinha wrote a column in ToI, extolling the force with which jobs were being created in the economy. We just lack the statistical tools to measure how much water is gushing through the Niagara Falls, he had said.