APAn increasing number of employers are focusing on hiring candidates who have some prior work experience and apprenticeships is playing a crucial role in bridging this gap, according to a study by TeamLease Degree Apprenticeship and JustJobs Network.
The study reiterates that Indian youth do not have proper exposure to the world of work when they are learning and their education and skills are not adequately aligned with what industry requires.
“Moreover, as the world of work is changing, more employers are keen to hire candidates with some prior work experience. In this context, apprenticeships are transforming the country’s skills pedagogy, enhancing youth employability, and enabling candidates to find right opportunities and assisting organisations to access apprentices,” the study highlights.
The study states that doubling the number of apprentices from 500,000 to 10,00,000 per year, and setting an initial target of 10 million apprentices in ten years, is a crucial step in bridging the skill gap.
India has the largest heterogeneous youth cohort of 371 million, with close to 3.5% youth joining the workforce every year.
“We are also a country with rising unemployment and underemployment concerns,” said Rituparna Chakraborty, Co-Founder & Executive Director, TeamLease Services. “Unemployment rate in India went from 2.3% in 2009 to 5.8% in 2018 and youth unemployment rate is at 12.9%. From those who are unemployed, 16% are graduate degree holders and over 14% are post graduate degree students. All of this indicates a significant mismatch between what the world of work needs and what our youth knows,” she added.
“Apprenticeships have emerged as an enterprising and promising solution which is truly augmenting the employability landscape in India. However with our current base of mere 500,000 apprentices, we have barely reached our true potential,” she added.
Sabina Dewan, President & Executive Director, JustJobs Network, said: “There is a widening chasm between education, training, and employment in India. Despite the complex web of government schemes and non-profit, for-profit, and public institutions that provide training, the incidence of formal training remains low at less than 4%. The supply-side focus of training does not align with the demands of the job market. Our large and growing youth population needs good jobs to harness their productive potential, but businesses also need a workforce that is equipped to meet the growing and changing demands of markets.”
Apprenticeships can help bridge these gaps, resulting in better outcomes for youth, but also good return on investment for employers by significantly reducing the cost of hiring, imparting need-based skills, and expanding the pool of potential hires, added Dewan.
The report further states that to arrest the persisting challenges of youth unemployment and underemployment, scaling the apprentice pool is critical.
India currently has only 500,000 apprentices, which constitutes 0.11% of the pool of apprentices worldwide. “With these reforms, we will not only ramp up our apprenticeship adoption, but we will also be closer to what is already happening in Europe, China, Japan – countries that have pioneered apprenticeships over the decade,” the report stated.
The study reiterates that Indian youth do not have proper exposure to the world of work when they are learning and their education and skills are not adequately aligned with what industry requires.
“Moreover, as the world of work is changing, more employers are keen to hire candidates with some prior work experience. In this context, apprenticeships are transforming the country’s skills pedagogy, enhancing youth employability, and enabling candidates to find right opportunities and assisting organisations to access apprentices,” the study highlights.
The study states that doubling the number of apprentices from 500,000 to 10,00,000 per year, and setting an initial target of 10 million apprentices in ten years, is a crucial step in bridging the skill gap.
India has the largest heterogeneous youth cohort of 371 million, with close to 3.5% youth joining the workforce every year.
“We are also a country with rising unemployment and underemployment concerns,” said Rituparna Chakraborty, Co-Founder & Executive Director, TeamLease Services. “Unemployment rate in India went from 2.3% in 2009 to 5.8% in 2018 and youth unemployment rate is at 12.9%. From those who are unemployed, 16% are graduate degree holders and over 14% are post graduate degree students. All of this indicates a significant mismatch between what the world of work needs and what our youth knows,” she added.
“Apprenticeships have emerged as an enterprising and promising solution which is truly augmenting the employability landscape in India. However with our current base of mere 500,000 apprentices, we have barely reached our true potential,” she added.
Sabina Dewan, President & Executive Director, JustJobs Network, said: “There is a widening chasm between education, training, and employment in India. Despite the complex web of government schemes and non-profit, for-profit, and public institutions that provide training, the incidence of formal training remains low at less than 4%. The supply-side focus of training does not align with the demands of the job market. Our large and growing youth population needs good jobs to harness their productive potential, but businesses also need a workforce that is equipped to meet the growing and changing demands of markets.”
Apprenticeships can help bridge these gaps, resulting in better outcomes for youth, but also good return on investment for employers by significantly reducing the cost of hiring, imparting need-based skills, and expanding the pool of potential hires, added Dewan.
The report further states that to arrest the persisting challenges of youth unemployment and underemployment, scaling the apprentice pool is critical.
India currently has only 500,000 apprentices, which constitutes 0.11% of the pool of apprentices worldwide. “With these reforms, we will not only ramp up our apprenticeship adoption, but we will also be closer to what is already happening in Europe, China, Japan – countries that have pioneered apprenticeships over the decade,” the report stated.
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