As per latest data from the Monster Employment Index, it hiring demand has increased by 8% the last six months, even with the impact of the second wave of the pandemic. Compared to August, September saw a stable monthly growth of 1% in job posting activity this year. Moreover, job postings improved by 9% year-on-year (Sept 2021 vs Sept 2020), indicating an optimistic outlook for the rest of the year.

In September 2021, Printing/Packaging (11%) grew at a considerable pace, while a positive M-o-M uptick was also witnessed in industries such as BPO/ITES (5%), Import/Export (4%), Retail (2%) and Travel & Tourism (2%). Cities such as Baroda (3%) and Ahmedabad (1%) noted the highest job posting activity in the country (Sept 2021 vs Aug 2021).

Banking/Financial Services, Insurance leads year-on-year growth at 31%; outshines IT- Hardware, Software industry

On a positive note, the Printing/Packaging (11%) industry led with the highest month-on-month growth in September 2021 on account of rising online sales, followed by NGO/Social Services (5%), Office Equipment/Automation (5%), BPO/ITES (5%) and Import/Export (4%). Industries such as Banking/Financial Services, Insurance, Retail, and Travel and Tourism also saw positive uptick at 2% each (Sept 2021 vs Aug 2021). 

However, Garments/ Textiles/ Leather, Gems & Jewellery (-17%) which saw significant improvement last month due to peak festive hiring, witnessed a decline along with Production and Manufacturing (-9%), Telecom/ISP (-3%), and Oil/Gas/Petroleum, Power (-3%), which also saw decline in job postings in September 2021.

A year-on-year (Sept 2021 vs Sept 2020) comparison shows that the Banking/ Financial Services, Insurance (31%) industry outshone all others with the highest growth, owing to increased focus on digital innovation, neobanks, AI, and cybersecurity trends.

Metro cities continue to lead yearly growth in hiring activity but witness a monthly decline in September 

In September 2021, location-wise data indicates that cities Baroda (3%), Ahmedabad (1%), and Delhi-NCR (1%) witnessed a positive uptick in job posting activity (Sept 2021 vs Aug 2021). Notably, hiring in most metro cities such as Kolkata (-4%), Chennai (-4%), Bangalore (-3%), Pune (-2%), Hyderabad (-2%), and Mumbai (-1%) showed a monthly decline, in contrast to their performance over the last few months. 

This trend could be on the rationale of back-to-office trends and remote working preferences of the workforce.

Software, Hardware, Telecom, Finance and Accounts, HR & Admin roles mark positive yearly growth across Tier-1 cities

Online demand for professionals in Purchase/Logistics/Supply Chain (7%) led with the highest monthly growth, given the persistent rise of e-commerce in India, while roles in Arts/Creative (6%), Senior Management (5%), HR & Admin (4%), and Finance & Accounts (1%) also witnessed an uptick in job postings month-on-month (Sept 2021 vs Aug 2021). 

However, occupations such as Legal (-4%), Sales & Business Development (-4%), Software, Hardware, Telecom (-3%), Hospitality & Travel (-2%), and Health Care (-1%) saw a fall in job posting activities in September 2021.

Hiring for professionals in Software, Hardware, Telecom (35%), Senior Management (23%), HR & Admin (11%), and Finance & Accounts (7%) continued to flourish on a year-on-year basis (Sept 2021 vs Sept 2020). Interestingly, HR & Admin roles have seen a marked positive incline across all metropolitan cities, while Software, Hardware, Telecom, and Finance and Accounts also witnessed significant growth across almost all cities tracked by the Index.   

Sekhar Garisa, CEO - Monster.com said, “As we approach the end of the quarter, it is promising to see that we have witnessed 6% growth in hiring activity over the last three months. With imminent festive sales and significant increase in e-commerce activities, it is notable that job roles for Logistics and Supply Chain are well in demand. Moreover, with emerging back-to-office trends and increased vaccination efforts, we are bound to see a change in the Indian recruitment space for the better.”