Out of the 18 sectors analyzed in the report, 17 out of 18 sectors have shown has positive net apprenticeship outlook (NAO). Manufacturing & Engineering (68%), Retail (58%) & Automobile and Ancillaries (58%) are the top sectors hiring apprentices

The rapid digital transformation has created jobs that never existed before in emerging industries like Fintech and Insurtech. Hence companies are stepping up their investment in skill development by welcoming entry-level talent to grow and become a skilled workforce. Interestingly, in India, companies are looking beyond metro cities to hire remote apprentices. The demand is likely to continue in the upcoming months. Moreover, businesses are also welcoming even talent who are not recent graduates but want to upskill themselves through an apprenticeship program. Such steps will help companies bounce back to pre-covid levels and fuel business growth in the long run. While apprenticeship programs are a positive sign, companies shall reform their program to offer promising growth opportunities to young talent by upskilling and reskilling them. 

India’s largest degree apprenticeship program NETAP [National Employability through Apprenticeship Program] from TeamLease Skills University has launched their latest edition of Apprenticeship Outlook Report for H2 2021 (July to December 2021). According to the report findings, around 45% of the employers are keen on hiring apprentices in the current half year (July to December). The report indicates a 4% increase in the intent compared to the previous half year (January to June). The report not only indicates that employers are keen to hire, but also highlights that close to 64% employers are keen to further increase their current apprentice intake (a 6% increase from H1 2021).

Out of the 18 sectors analyzed in the report, 17 out of 18 sectors have shown has positive net apprenticeship outlook (NAO). Manufacturing & Engineering (68%), Retail (58%) & Automobile and Ancillaries (58%) are the top sectors hiring apprentices. In fact, Manufacturing & Engineering is also one of the sectors which has recorded the strongest HY-on-HY growth (13%) amongst all sectors. From a city perspective, both metro and non-metro cities have been positive on the apprenticeship indicator, while some of the non-metros seem to exhibiting a higher intent to hire apprentices. In fact, Lucknow (79%) and Ahmedabad (69%) seems to be faring better than the metros. Amongst the metros, Chennai (65%) and Delhi (58%) are the most promising locations for apprentices.

“At SE2, we have hired many trainees, interns, and fresh college graduates during the last two years. Most of the trainees and interns have been offered permanent jobs; they have done great work. For our engineering college graduates, we have a comprehensive multi-week induction program, starting before they join. The apprenticeship program has been highly successful for SE2, enabling growth for the company as well as the apprentice; the program will continue to be an essential aspect in future hiring and growth strategies,” shares Sumit Bhatia, Head HR, SE2 India.

India has battled two devastating waves of the covid-19 pandemic, which has a severe impact on employment opportunities. However, the Indian economy has shown signs of recovery since the beginning of 2021. There's an increasing demand for apprentices in companies. An apprenticeship is a win-win proposition for businesses and talent to navigate through challenges and strive for growth.

Sharing his views on the current apprentice hiring trends, Sumit Kumar, Vice President - NETAP, TeamLease Skill University said, “2021 has been a rewarding year for apprentices despite the economic concerns caused by the COVID crisis. The positivity in the ecosystem that we saw in the first half of the year, with 41% employers keen on hiring apprentices, continues in H2 as well. In fact, more employers, close to 45% are looking to hire apprentices. What’s more interesting is that 64% of the employers are indeed interested to increase their current apprentice pool. This overall vigor in the ecosystem hints at the fact that more employers are realizing the potential of apprenticeships. In our country, talent deficit has been a major concern for the industry, but over the years, apprenticeships have played a pivotal role in addressing the skill and employability crisis. On one hand, apprenticeships have enabled employers to create a relevant and productive workforce and on the other hand, apprenticeships have empowered the youth with skills, channelized them towards formal employment, and enhanced their employability and livelihood”.

Highlighting the changes in the workforce, Anil Mohanty, Head of People and Culture, Medikabazaar emphasizes,
 "While the pandemic has put pressure on many industries with many people laid off, we have been bucking this trend with our hiring spree. The country is opening up and business is getting back on the growth path. We believe that India Inc. will be looking at talent who have the skills for the digital future and this includes technology such as AI, ML, IoT and AR/VR. Going forward, we plan to prepare for our planned expansion with hiring requisite talent across departments and especially in the supply chain, operations and technology," 

Dwelling deep into the report findings, from the perspective of the size of the business, hiring outlook to see an appreciable increase across Small (H2: 23%, H1:8%), Medium (H2: 42%, H1:37%), and Large businesses (H2: 61%, H1:50%), for the Jul–Dec 2021 HY as compared to the previous HY.

For apprentice categories; optional trade (H2:49%, H1:43%), degree apprentices (H2:48%, H1:28%), graduate apprentices (H2:36%, H1:17%) and designated trade (H2:36%, H1:16%) sees an uptick while trade apprentices see a 1% dip from 55% in previous HY to 54% in the July-December period. Fitter/Welder (13%) under Trade category, QA Engineer (15%) under Graduate category, IT /Computer Technician (19%) under Technician category and Production Technician (16%) under Technician Vocational category are the most sought after job profiles for hiring during the current HY.

The Apprenticeship Outlook Report is a detailed survey, covering 14 cities and 18 leading sectors. The report has surveyed 833 companies and captures the hiring sentiment for the period H2 (July to December) 2021.