According to the latest survey conducted by Monster.com the Indian travel and tourism industry is showing promising revival growth post the decline of the second wave of the pandemic in 2021. In the survey titled Monster Employment Index, the industry marked a 4% increase in the demand for talent in December 2021- an optimistic outlook for the sector that continuously exhibited a double-digit decline in the previous months. However, the industry marked a 1% monthly dip in job postings with the advent of the third wave, consequent travel restrictions, and safety norms.

The industry, which saw a steady increase in job postings post the second wave reaching an absolute high in the month of July (with 16% growth), showed a steady-state of revival until November 2021. This growth could be attributed to the emergence of revenge travel trends and staycations. 

Commenting on the revival trend, Sekhar Garisa, CEO, Monster said, “The Indian Travel & Tourism industry has truly paved its way to revival in 2021 as compared to the previous year, despite the challenges posed by the pandemic. While the new Omicron variant impacted the growth of the sector in December 2021, the industry is expected to account for about 53 million jobs by 2029 as per industry reports.”

Tier-2 cities led online hiring demand for Travel and Tourism in December 2021

City-specific trends for the travel and tourism industry indicate that on a month-on-month basis, tier-2 cities such as Chandigarh (9%), Baroda (6%), and Coimbatore (3%) reported a maximum increase in job postings standing tall against the waves of the pandemic, followed by Pune (2%) (Dec 2021 vs Nov 2021). This could be attributed to the “reverse migration” trend, as young professionals, in particular, are moving back to their home towns amidst lockdowns and restrictions, in search of a better quality of living. On the contrary, cities such as Hyderabad (-8%), Kochi (-7%), Ahmedabad (-5%), Jaipur (-3%), Delhi (-2%), and Kolkata (-2%) witnessed a decline, followed by Chennai, Bangalore, and Mumbai which noted a 1% dip in job posting activity, owing to the third wave of the pandemic and the surge in Omicron cases in the country. 

Year-on-year trends indicate that Chandigarh (25%) emerged as the city with the highest uptick in demand for Travel and Tourism professionals in India, followed by Bangalore (5%) and Kochi (2%). Cities that indicated a downtrend include Kolkata (-19%), Coimbatore (-17%), Jaipur (-4%), Chennai (-3%), and Hyderabad (-3%). Mumbai (-2%), Delhi-NCR (-1%). While Coimbatore, Jaipur, and Hyderabad exhibited a slight uptick in the previous month, demand for talent in the cities have dipped in the last month of 2021. Pune (-1%), and Baroda (-1%) also showed a marginal decline in job posting activity (Dec 2021 vs Dec 2020). 

Top Management roles accounted for the highest demand share in Travel & Tourism across experience levels 

As of December 2021, top management (over 15 years) professionals held the highest share in online hiring intent for jobs in the travel and tourism industry at 47%. Moreover, there was a tremendous surge for freshers/entry-level (0-3 years) talent who held the second-largest share of 27% across experience levels, followed by intermediate level (4-6 years) roles with an 11% share.

Sekhar further added that it is also encouraging that the Ministry of Tourism and the Indian government have taken several steps in the past year to strengthen the hospitality and tourism industry in India, helping employers gain momentum in the space. “Furthermore, we hope that the upcoming Union Budget 2022 provides incentives for job creation in the Travel industry, in addition to GST relief for business recovery, and increased access to capital at preferential terms of interest for business owners,” said Sekhar.