The hiring activity has increased in India as restrictions are lifted and the business sector ramps up operations and sales, according to a Teamlease Employment Outlook report. The intent to hire freshers has increased by 7 per cent in the current quarter.

Further, the intent to hire junior level staff is also on a positive trajectory, indicating that the second quarter of this fiscal year is expected to be dominated by volume hiring, the report said.

The survey covered 661 small, medium, and large companies across 4 geographical areas (metros, tier-1, tier-2/3 and rural), 4 hierarchical levels (entry, junior, mid, and senior levels), and 7 functional areas (sales, marketing, information technology, engineering, office services, human resources, blue collar).

"Most of the industries seem to have overcome the impact of the second wave and are moving towards growth. In fact, the focus of industries on profiles that are at the execution level is an indication that businesses have got their strategy as well as plan in place and this trend of positive momentum is here to stay," said Rituparna Chakraborty, Co-Founder & Executive Vice President, TeamLease Services.

According to the report, the growth in the GST collection, e-way bills, vehicle registrations, electricity demand, rail freight, and petrol consumption seems to indicate that the economy has started to recover from the impact of the second wave and this seems to be having a ripple and positive impact on the hiring sentiments as well.

"The festive season is around the corner and most of the sectors would want to put the season to maximum use and this is also a reflection of why there is a significant rise in demand for freshers and junior talent," Chakraborty added.

The positivity in the intent is largely dominated by Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals, Information Technology, Educational Services, Ecommerce & Technology Start-ups, Fast Moving Consumer Goods, Agriculture & Agrochemicals, Retail (Essential), Logistics and Manufacturing, Engineering & Infra.

The report further said that in India, a better than projected GDP growth, demand uptick, higher export valuation and healthy ultra-high frequency data – during the first quarter, and the relaxation of restrictions on economic activity is opening up opportunities.

"However, a drop in the PMI for Manufacturing and Services in the aftermath of the second wave lowers the growth in hiring intent," it noted.

Globally, inoculation drives and unlocking of economic activities are gradually raising hiring intent in many regions, but the recovery is inconsistent, the report said.

The Americas, Europe and APAC witnessed impressive improvement in hiring intent. Talent markets in the US, Canada, and Middle East benefit from high vaccination rates, while those in APAC countries benefit from the unlocking of their economies, it added.