Skill-imparting companies train youth for evolving job market demands

According to data by Institute for Human Development, unemployment rate for graduates and those having higher qualifications has been declining

Skill-imparting companies and those working in the field of education, aware of the challenges faced by the youth in finding suitable jobs, are coming out with innovative solutions to make undergraduates, graduates, technical hands, and informal workers more employable.

According to data compiled by the Institute for Human Development (IHD) on the basis of the periodic labour force surveys (PLFS),  the unemployment rate for graduates and those having higher qualifications has been declining, along with that for lower qualified people (with one exception for below primary level people for 2018-19) since 2017-18 (July-June). However, the rate of decline is faster in the case of the latter. The data is census-adjusted.

Though technical education is supposed to make the youth employable, the recent India Employment Report, 2024, prepared by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and IHD, reveals that graduates with even such skills have a higher unemployment rate than merely bachelor degree holders in India during 2022-23 and the pace of joblessness in this category has increased over 17 years.

However, the former got better quality jobs than the latter. Besides, those with less than graduation degrees see less unemployment rate than witnessed by graduates and higher qualified people, but those jobs are usually low-paid. As such, all kinds of youth workforce face problems in finding the right kind of jobs.

Shantanu Rooj, founder and CEO of TeamLease Edtech, the employability wing of TeamLease responsible for upskilling and reskilling at corporate and university levels, says there is a mismatch between what employers expect from higher qualified people and what colleges and universities are preparing them to be. “That is the challenge because of which we see higher unemployment in that segment than faced by others,” he explains.

To fill this gap, TeamLease Edtech has started “Work-linked degree programmes” in partnership with universities, colleges, and employers. “We are working with thousands of colleges to provide their students with internships in companies or with professionals. So, students learn practical skill sets while they are still studying,” he tells Business Standard.  

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Eye on the future

When these students pass out, they have theoretical knowledge as well as a fair understanding of practical stuff. They understand what employers are looking for and they become employable.

“Our initiative is a separate category of degree courses which were launched by the same universities or colleges as one more category,” says Rooj.

For instance, Aligarh Muslim University teaches in three formats: Campus college, online platform, and now a work-linked degree programme. In the third category, students either join the university campus or online and visit companies for internship for eight hours.

“These students pass out with three years of work experience. Students also get stipends of Rs 9,000 to Rs 12,000 a month, which takes care of their course fee. These candidates can be immediately put to jobs once they pass out,” he says.

TeamLease Edtech has partnered with companies such as Bajaj Auto, Blue Star, SKF, Lotus Herbal, Schneider Electric India, Leadsquared, Link CXO, BeeRoute, and Corizo.

Anish Srikrishna, CEO of TimesPro, the EdTech initiative of the Times Group, says it is crucial that the youth are equipped with the requisite skills to seize opportunities as India strides towards a $5 trillion economy.

He says TimesPro, which offers online courses and certification, is committed to bridging the existing academic gap by providing its learners with competencies aligned with the demands of Industry 4.0.

“We are steadfast in our commitment to delivering excellence in education by imparting cutting-edge skills to our youth through our Higher EdTech solutions,” he points out.

These solutions encompass upskilling initiatives and technical learning for graduates to avail employment opportunities across various sectors including BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance), supply chain and logistics, e-commerce, hospitality, healthcare, and new-age tech, Srikrishna says. The platform  offers courses in quantitative finance, sales and service management,  logistics and supply chain management, advanced healthcare management, data science, fintech, applied artificial intelligence and machine learning, among others.

Srikrishna points out that the company’s technology-driven executive education modules are specifically designed to foster leadership development and ensure that the current workforce remains resilient and prepared to navigate the uncertainties of the VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) world.

Akshay Munjal, founder and CEO of Hero Vired which is a Hero group learntech start-up for professionals and higher education aspirants,  says the company recognises the expanding skill gap intensified by emerging technologies.

"To address this, we offer online certification courses in collaboration with top global institutes. Our programmes span data science, technology, finance management and future tech and focus on practical skills and  immersive learning experiences," he says.

Designed for professionals, graduates and government bodies, the courses aim to enhance youth employability and prepare them for the future industry demands, Munjal says.

Hero Vired has collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), INSEAD, and University of Chicago for these courses.  

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Growing challenge

Suchita Dutta, executive director at Indian Staffing Federation (ISF), says India is notably faced with the challenge of a growing number of unemployable youth which also include candidates with technical skills.

ISF, as the representative body of the staffing industry, has taken steps to create employability in this demography through employment-linked skilling programmes conducted by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, along with staffing companies.

These programmes focus on bridging the gap between academia and industry by providing hands-on training, mentorship opportunities, and career guidance to young professionals, she says.

The primary aim of the partnership between ISF and NSDC is to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application by providing training and development opportunities that are directly linked to job placements, Dutta elucidates.

“By equipping them (young professionals) with both technical expertise and essential workplace skills, ISF aims to enhance their marketability and help them secure meaningful employment in their respective fields,” she says.

Surinder Bhagat, founder and chief executive (CEO) of Gigin, which is a platform to connect informal workers with employers, says the platform recognises the concerning trend revealed in the recent India Employment Report 2024, which highlights a growing discrepancy between the skills possessed by young individuals and those demanded by the job market.

This platform provides the facility of job search for workers as well as verification tools for employers. The company is now looking at upskilling informal workers to make them suitable for the job market. It plans to launch this facility in no more than a year, reveals Bhagat.

Pointing out that 90 per cent of the 550 million workforce in India is informal, he says Gigin will partner with offline certification agencies to upskill informal workers -- delivery boys, BFSI workers, nurses, ambulance drivers, chefs, etc.

Cairn Enterprise Centre (CEC), a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative of Cairn Oil and Gas, is providing vocational training to the youth in some parts of the country including Barmer in Rajasthan to equip them with technical skills.

It organised a placement drive in partnership with the Department of Technical Education, Rajasthan government in Barmer during 2023-24. As many as 376 students have been successfully placed with companies like Adani Port, Tata Motors, Maxxis India, a company spokesperson said.

"Skilling our youth remains one of our commitments towards a brighter future and with the initiative of CEC, we are on a mission to empower students, providing them with the technical skills needed for rewarding careers," he said. 

Then there are some who want to make the youth employers instead of job seekers. For instance, Ahmedabad-based Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) catches even those aged 12 to 16 years to inculcate in them the spirit of employers. It organises camps for these children as well those aged 16 to 22 to infuse them with such skill-sets. Four similar camps would be organised later this month in Ahmedabad.

"Entrepreneurship acquires meaning beyond just setting up enterprises. Entrepreneurship education, training and mentoring inculcates traits that make achievers in any field,"  says Pankaj Bharti, camp leader and associate professor at EDII.

He says children and youth need to be introduced to these winning traits during their formative years. "These camps have been modelled around this objective of catching them young to inculcate persuasive qualities in them," Bharti says.

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Worried Youth

Data given in The India Employment Report, 2024, shows the unemployment rate in the case of graduates and those having higher qualifications declined by around 21 per cent during 2017-18 to 2022-23 (July to June).

The rate of fall was around 75 per cent in the case of those having below primary level education, 68.5 per cent for those having primary to middle level of education, and 55 per cent in the case of those having secondary to higher secondary qualifications.  

Still, more than one-fourth of the graduates willing to work did not get the required jobs during 2022-23, while joblessness was almost extinct for those having below primary level of education.

In 2022-23, the unemployment rate among youth with a graduate and technical diploma was the highest at 31.1 per cent, closely followed by those with a technical training degree at 29.4 per cent.

The unemployment rate among youths with formal vocational training was significantly higher than among youths with informal vocational training, underscoring that informal training is acquired on the job.

Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) on which the report is mainly based does not capture disguised unemployment or underemployment.