Unemployed people and lack of skill

In modern times, the definition of employment aka job has changed a lot. The public perception that government service is the only honourable job has also changed. Although the salaries of government officials have generally increased, the youngsters of today are now more interested in becoming new-gen professionals who fetch five or six times that amount as salary and other benefits from large private firms. Their attitude is not to choose a government job considering short working hours, holidays, job security and pension benefits. Moreover, at a time when startups are receiving huge support from governments, a large number of young people with great ideas and energy are interested in starting their own ventures.

Recently, a report by the International Labor Organization (ILO) pointed out that job opportunities are decreasing in India. According to a report published by the ILO in collaboration with the Institute of Human Development, unemployment among those with higher secondary education has doubled in the last twenty years, and 83 percent of the unemployed are youngsters. Another estimate is that ninety percent of the country's workforce is in the unorganized sector. Jobs in the IT sector are not in the organized sector. At a time when new technologies, including AI, are gaining popularity in all sectors, most of such job opportunities are outside the government sector.

We know that nowadays, there is very little demand for traditional courses and traditional career fields. There was a time when young people used to walk around for years without getting any job after finishing their studies. The number of people waiting endlessly to earn government jobs has reduced. In the new era, the added value is for the skill and not the certificate in hand. The government sector is a service sector. Hence, the declining employment opportunities in the government sector should be looked upon seriously.

The administrative machinery would function properly only with the services of officials. The services related to the life of the common people will not be interrupted and delayed only if that machinery functions properly. The study report says that employment opportunities in the organized sector decreased significantly after 2018. The report also points to an even more serious issue- the lack of job skills of the employed youth. As India is poised to take a leap to become a major economic powerhouse, and as development across the country accelerates, the employment sector and the job skills of the youth must be strengthened. Not only the youngsters but also the governments must see that times are changing beyond numbers.