The Indian media and publishing industry has been hit hard in recent years, with a staggering 78% of jobs disappearing between September 2016 and August 2021, according to a survey by the Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE). This translates to a decline from over 10.3 lakh people employed in the sector to a mere 2.3 lakh.
The job losses haven’t been limited to publishing. CMIE data reveals a worrying trend across the entire job market. The national unemployment rate reached a concerning 8.3% in August 2021, compared to 7% the previous month. This translates to a loss of 1.9 million jobs, primarily concentrated in the agricultural sector.
While farm jobs decreased by a significant 8.7 million, the non-farm sector saw a rise of 6.8 million positions. However, this increase was largely driven by informal work, with a surge of nearly 4 million business owners and 2.1 million daily wage laborers and small traders. Salaried jobs only saw a marginal increase of 0.7 million.
The pandemic-induced lockdowns have also had a lasting impact on the manufacturing sector, leading to an estimated permanent loss of 10 million jobs. This sector, which pre-pandemic employed around 40 million people, saw a sharp decline to 21 million in April 2020. Although it showed signs of recovery, reaching nearly 30 million by July 2020, subsequent lockdowns caused further dips. As of August 2021, manufacturing employment stood at around 28 million, highlighting the struggle for a full recovery.
CMIE emphasizes the concerning trend of unreliable job security in the manufacturing sector, with the pre-pandemic level of 40 million jobs seeming increasingly unattainable.
This news comes amidst a larger economic slowdown in India. In May 2021, investment bank Barclays estimated the country was losing a staggering $8 billion (around Rs 60,000 crore) every week. The total projected loss for the year was a significant $117 billion (Rs 8.5 trillion), representing 3.75% of India’s GDP.
The unemployment situation worsened in April 2021 when the rate reached 8% and the labor participation rate stagnated at 40%. By May, the situation had become even more grim, with the unemployment rate climbing to a peak of 14.7%.
The significant job losses in the media and publishing industry, coupled with the broader economic slowdown, paint a concerning picture for the Indian workforce. While the non-farm sector shows some signs of revival, the dominance of informal work and the struggles in manufacturing raise questions about the quality and stability of job creation in the country.
