Drivers, delivery boys to drive blue collar job growth in India: Report

Blue collar jobs in the gig economy are growing at a much faster rate than in the traditional segment, says Saurabh Tandon, co-founder, BetterPlace, an end to end blue collar employee lifecycle management firm.

Speaking to Moneycontrol at the sidelines of the launch of 'Blue Collar Jobs report 2019' on March 13, Tandon said, “The growth rate of blue collar jobs in the gig economy is at least 2X more than that of traditional jobs.” These jobs include drivers and delivery boys that are largely driven by the growth of tech-based startup ecosystem.

According to the report, close to 21 lakh jobs will be created in the next one year, with delivery personnel and drivers accounting for close to 14 lakh of these jobs. This is followed by security personnel and facility staff who count for 3.5 lakh and 2.5 lakh of these jobs respectively.

Five South Indian states – Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Telangana – will generate 40 percent of these blue collar jobs. Tier 1 cities continue to be the largest job generators, with Bengaluru being the largest at 2.35 lakh jobs generated and Delhi at 2.25 lakh jobs. Hyderabad and Chennai are emerging as the fastest cities for the growth of  blue collar jobs at 54,000 and 93,222 jobs respectively.

Though the jobs do not require high educational qualifications, Tandon said, “What is interesting is that one in 10 drivers hold a bachelor’s degree based on our survey.” Such individuals are unable to find a suitable job for their degree, these jobs give them better pay.

Better pay

The report points out that the increase in job opportunities has improved the average salary in gig economy. This means that many people in traditional blue collar jobs are shifting to gig economy blue collar jobs.

For instance there are 2.5 lakh security guards in Bengaluru. Of the 2.5 lakh, 60 percent are from Odisha, 30 percent from Tripura and Bengal and the rest from Jharkhand and other regions.

Tandon said, “A few years ago, people from Bihar accounted for 30 percent (of security guard jobs). Now they have all upskilled and are drivers.”

According to the report five states contribute to around 60 percent of migratory population, which are Uttar Pradesh at 17 percent, Andhra Pradesh at 17 percent, Assam at 13 percent, Odisha at 11 percent and Bihar at 11 percent.

These job seekers move to the nearest metro city for gigs such as delivery and driving. The report points out that the migration pattern is based on skill hubs, location, social networks and salary.

Blue collar jobs also see highest rates of attrition ranging between 40 percent and 300 percent. This is either due to a change of jobs or the need for people to go back to their home town.