Key points:

  • Indian job postings rose for the second straight month, consolidating strong gains from May.
  • Over the past three months, postings have climbed in almost every occupational group, led by agriculture & forestry, veterinary and therapy postings. 
  • Remote job postings and searches have increased over the past year. Nearly one-in-nine jobseeker searches in India are for remote work — a new record high. 

In June, Indian job postings on Indeed rose 0.6%, building on May’s strong gain. Job postings are still 80% above pre-pandemic levels, but have declined by 4.8% over the past year and are almost 16% below their January 2023 peak.

Line and bar graph titled “Change in Indian job postings on Indeed.” With a vertical axis ranging from -30 to 60%, Indian job postings rose by 0.6% in June, a second straight monthly increase. 
Line and bar graph titled “Change in Indian job postings on Indeed.” With a vertical axis ranging from -30 to 60%, Indian job postings rose by 0.6% in June, a second straight monthly increase. 

Indeed’s data reflects hiring by companies and organisations — the formal economy — rather than the informal work arrangements common throughout India. While not representative of the entire labour market, Indeed’s data provides useful insights into India’s ongoing economic transition. 

Every month, the Indian workforce gradually transitions towards more formal work arrangements. As this shift continues, job creation across the formal sector will likely outpace overall employment growth nationwide. 

Recent posting growth mixed across occupations

Job postings increased across all but two occupational categories over the past three months. Gains were largest in agriculture & forestry, up 59%, followed by veterinary (+44%), therapy (36%) and beauty & wellness (34%). Postings across a wide variety of occupations have increased recently, pointing towards broad-based hiring strength throughout India. 

The only sectors to record declines were community & social services and pharmacy roles, down 8.5% and 6.8%, respectively, over the past three months. Other weaker performers include human resources (+2.6%), medical information (+4.2%) and project management (+5.2%). 

Although not one of the stronger performers, software development remains India’s largest source of formal job opportunities, with postings up 6.9% over the past three months. The sector accounts for around one-in-five Indian job postings. 

Table titled “Change in Indian job postings.” Indeed’s data shows that Indian job postings for agriculture & forestry, veterinary and therapy were the fastest growing over the past three months, while community & social services and pharmacy were the only sectors where postings fell.
Table titled “Change in Indian job postings.” Indeed’s data shows that Indian job postings for agriculture & forestry, veterinary and therapy were the fastest growing over the past three months, while community & social services and pharmacy were the only sectors where postings fell.

Jobseeker interest in remote work hits record high

While some employers are encouraging a return to the office, interest in remote work remains high. In June, 8.7% of Indian job postings were classified as remote jobs — that is, they explicitly mention phrases such as ‘work from home’ or ‘hybrid work’ in their job descriptions. This was 1 percentage point higher than a year ago, but remains well below its peak of 11.3% in 2020. 

Jobseeker interest in these remote opportunities has never been higher. Close to one-in-nine jobseeker searches in India are for remote work, up 1.5 percentage points from a year earlier. 

Remote jobs can be appealing to Indian jobseekers for several reasons. First, they can mitigate long commute times, particularly in congested urban areas. Second, they allow workers to live regionally while accessing urban-based jobs. And third, they enable jobseekers to take advantage of global job opportunities. This has been facilitated via improved digital infrastructure and fast-tracked by the global pandemic. 

Two-panel line graph titled “India remote postings and searches.” With a vertical axis ranging from 0 to 15%, 8.7% of Indian job postings mention remote work in their job descriptions, while one-in-nine jobseeker searches are for remote opportunities. 
Two-panel line graph titled “India remote postings and searches.” With a vertical axis ranging from 0 to 15%, 8.7% of Indian job postings mention remote work in their job descriptions, while one-in-nine jobseeker searches are for remote opportunities. 

Conclusion

In June, job creation across India’s formal sector consolidated the large gains recorded in May, facilitating India’s ongoing shift from lower-productivity work in the non-formal sector towards higher-productivity opportunities. 

While India doesn’t face a shortage of available workers, skill mismatches remain a challenge. Higher-skilled roles, in particular, can face persistent skill shortages due to gaps in the skills jobseekers possess and the skills employers seek. 

Geopolitical and economic uncertainty remains a potential headwind, though not one that appears to be influencing job creation. Employers would naturally prefer greater certainty, which allows them to invest and determine headcount with confidence — but that isn’t possible right now.