Three in five companies in India are not planning to hire apprentices, survey says

• A study by TeamLease and National Employability Through Apprenticeship Programme (NETAP) shows that three in five companies in India are not planning to hire apprentices.
  
• Over 40% of employers in the manufacturing and services space are likely to hire apprentices.
  
• When it comes to trade apprentices, employers hire highschoolers — Class 10 and 12 passouts — more as compared to graduates.

Three in five Indian companies are not planning to hire apprentices, says a study by TeamLease and National Employability Through Apprenticeship Programme (NETAP). This is a big setback for the government which is looking to skill a large section of its population.

“We believe India is hugely underinvested as far as the apprenticeship programme is concerned and has to make amends because more than 40-45 years of slackness has led to the current levels of skilling in our country,” Ravi Vishwanath, CFO of TeamLease told ET.

The job crisis in the country will also show a reverse trend, according to Vishwanath. But manufacturing and services space are going against the basic trend, as over 40% of them are keen to hire apprentices.

“The visible shift is in the intake of apprentices due to increase in growth rate of the services sector. So far, it was the manufacturing sector that was taking apprentices. But now there is an active participation by the services sector as well,” said Sumit Kumar, VP (NETAP) at TeamLease Skill University.

In fact, when it comes to trade apprentices, employers prefer to hire highschoolers as compared to graduates. The western region is most likely to show a positive hiring sentiment in terms of apprenticeship, followed by north.

“Most employers engage apprentices with the purpose of meeting the skill requirements of the company, to boost productivity and to reduce costs. The prevailing economic slowdown has taken a toll on all major industries, and companies are hesitant to hire apprentices that will in turn be a burden on their current financial situation,” Kumar added.

The study surveyed nearly 500 employers across 12 sectors.

Companies hire apprentices — who are fresh graduates hired as trainees for a stipulated time. These apprentices are given a stipend of nearly ₹12,000 per month.

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