Job Crunch For Freshers? Hiring Market Shrinks Since 2021, IT Hit Hardest, Says Report

As the global job market continues to evolve, Indeed, a global talent matching and hiring platform, said that its data indicated fresher hiring in India has been on a downward trend over the last three years, since the pandemic. Since December 2021, fresher job postings have declined by 8.5% whereas job clicks have declined by 34.3%.

Indeed said that in the last year, there has been a 4.2% decline in the jobs posted for freshers in December 2023 compared to December 2022.

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Indeed stated that the data aims to provide insights into the challenges faced by fresh graduates seeking employment.

Decline In The Hiring Of Entry-level Professionals

Due to the current global events, the economic landscape has become unprecedented and has resulted in a decline in the hiring of entry-level professionals. This trend is particularly noticeable in the tech sector, where companies are reevaluating their recruitment strategies in light of market dynamics and uncertainties. This has been the scenario for the past three years, leading to a reduction in campus hiring initiatives by IT giants.

Skill Mismatch

Incidentally, demand from graduates for fresher roles has also drastically declined by 37.4% between December 2022 and 2023. There could be several reasons for this such as hesitation to enter the job market during industry volatilities, skill mismatch amidst a changing tech landscape, and differing salary expectations, Indeed added.

Despite the slowdown in hiring in IT sectors, the tech sector still was the second largest recruiter for fresher roles in the last year. While fresher hiring in tech is on a decline YoY, in comparison to other sectors, they still recruit a large portion. Admin roles were at the top with an 11.5% share in postings with Sales, Marketing and Management rounding up the top five sectors that hired freshers.

Sashi Kumar, head of sales at Indeed India, said, “Given the global market fluctuations over the last few years, large-scale fresher hiring has dwindled. Companies are currently cautious, choosing to see how the next few quarters pan out before committing to hiring. However, this does not mean that fresher hiring is at a standstill, other areas such as admin, sales, marketing, etc. continue to have opportunities for new graduates. As we observe the hiring landscape, it will be important for freshers to arm themselves with new age digital skills that can be a competitive advantage for them as companies begin to hire.”