Is Unemployment Problem Real?

Is unemployment problem real?

The employment scenario in India is very tricky.

Employers are always on the hunt for good talents to employ. They say that there is a short supply of right talent, with right skills....

On the other hand, there are enough and more youngsters including graduates and post-graduates who are unemployed. They complain that there are not enough opportunities for them.

We find an interesting gap, is it not?

I thought that my recent experience could be used to analyse why such a gap does exist. 

Recently  we released advertisements  for few vacant positions in various departments in the Telecom Software company where I am a partner.

We were particular about the skills required for the vacant jobs, we mentioned that in our advertisement also.

No doubt, We received plenty of applications.
Majority of the applications didn't meet the requirements and had to be rejected without consideration.

Ours is a small organisation and it's very important to have the right people for every job.   So, we have a practice that one of the promoters will meet all the candidates before finally vetting the appointment.

It was disheartening to observe that  barring very few almost all candidates didn't have the  skill set required for the job profile. (Those who had the required skills were shortlisted),

Not only many failed to acquire additional talents or skills, but also  donot have any passion to pursue.

They want a job, just because they have some degree behind their name...
Many of them don't even know what kind of a job they can fit in.

Since I observe this as a pattern with most job seekers, I am of the opinion that it is not them to be blamed.

Are we, as seniors, teachers, institutions, and as a society, giving them the right awareness and knowledge; The awareness about the importance of skill development and learning as a continuous process in one's life to be effective and successful?

High time we realise that the onus is on us, as a society, to make them understand the above.

At the same time, its also important for the job seekers to have an idea of what the employers expect of them...

The employability is decided by an employer based mostly on the following:
1. Academic qualification
2. Skill set required for the job
3. Domain experience (preferred)
4. Aptitude
5. Appetite for learning
6. Attitude

Simply put, employers give job only to those who are likely to be productive in their respective jobs.

It us also true that quite often, its the attitude and aptitude which wins an appointment for the job seekers, more than their qualification.

The fact is this:  every organisation is waiting to employ more people.
Lack of right hands with the requisite skills is preventing them to do so.

There is a clear gap between unemployment and employability...

Our current education system has  much more responsibility than just churning out graduates and post graduates who are not employable.

Need of the hour is, Job oriented training programs to be built as a part of the curriculum.

This is possible only when the Government and  decision makers in the education system take this up on war footing and come up with the right mix of academics and skill development.

Till then, it may be taken up by NGOs and socially responsible individuals.

After all, When the private sector is empowered by qualified employees resulting in better efficiency, the overall economy if the country stands to benefit.

Overall, creating awareness among job seekers about the importance of job oriented learning, and building facilities to impart such skills to them hold the key to this issue.