5G launch, festive season can push hiring in India's telecom sector: Report

Launch of 5G services will trigger job creation in the telecom sector. Telecom jobs have seen a 13 per cent rise in hirings, especially specialised roles, since key service providers are rolling out 5G services in different cities and expanding data centre capabilities, as per a recent Monster Employment Index report. The report said hiring intent in the telecom sector is likely to remain positive for the upcoming quarters also since 5G is touted to be a gamechanger in the industry and improve its overall health. 

It further stated that hirings have seen an upswing in sectors like apparel, textiles and jewellery (11 per cent); production and manufacturing (5 per cent); and retail (5 per cent) due to the festive season. Jobs in the travel and hospitality sector have also risen by 9 per cent due to the same. 

Commenting on the hiring trends, Monster.com CEO Sekhar Garisa said that the telecom jobs market looks optimistic due to the 5G rollout. Garisa noted, “The path ahead paints a picture of tech-focused job roles; hence, skilling is of paramount importance for an employable India. Besides this, the festive season builds great revenue in sectors such as retail, e-commerce, travel, manufacturing, import and export and creates a holistic job market for the quarter in these industries. Moreover, we expect tier 2 and tier 3 cities to potentially contribute to a large extent in the coming year.”

Other sectors where hiring is on the rise are import and export (28 per cent), automation (65 per cent), human resources (9 per cent) and BFSI (9 per cent). Sectors that saw a decline in hirings include media and entertainment, home appliances, shipping and marine, IT and BPO/ITES. Hiring in the IT and BPO/ITES sectors was muted due to rising attrition and changing workplace sentiments. 

Companies in the media and entertainment sector monitored their spends, thus, leading to a steep decline in hirings. In the case of the home appliances sector, the decline in hirings was a result of low demand and high raw material costs. Marketing-related jobs like sales and business and marketing and communications also saw a downward trend. Other sectors like engineering/production, supply chain/logistics and healthcare also saw a decline in hirings. 

Moving away from the sectoral analysis, hirings went up by 10 per cent in Ahmedabad, followed by Mumbai at 8 per cent. Other cities that saw a growth in hiring are Coimbatore, Hyderabad and Jaipur. Delhi-NCR, however, remained stagnant. While Baroda saw a 13 per cent decline in hirings, Kolkata witnessed a 15 per cent downturn. Cities like Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Kochi and Pune also saw a decline in hirings. 

Also read: Jio and Airtel 5G now available in India: 10 things you need to know

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