India’s Job Market Soars: Online Postings Up 20% In 2024

India’s job market witnessed robust growth in 2024, with online job postings rising by 20% year-on-year, surpassing 12 lakh openings.

According to the India at Work 2024 report, India’s Job Market surge was fueled by digital adoption, expansion of Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs), and increased hiring in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.

Apna, a job and professional networking platform, reported a 32% increase in job postings, crossing 3.5 lakh across all categories in over 500 cities. Notably, 45% of postings came from non-metro areas. Tier 2 cities like Jaipur, Lucknow, and Indore saw a 1.5x increase in jobs, while Tier 3 cities like Varanasi, Raipur, and Dehradun experienced a remarkable 3x growth.

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Key sectors driving the hiring boom included BFSI, retail, healthcare, IT-enabled services, education, and manufacturing. Gig roles in delivery, mobility, and e-commerce alone accounted for over 50,000 jobs. Sales roles led with 44,000 postings, followed by customer support (35,000) and HR functions (25,000).

The report highlighted SMBs as major contributors, posting 9 lakh job openings—a 20% increase from 2023. SMBs embraced AI-driven hiring technologies, creating 2.4 lakh job postings and reducing hiring time by 30% and costs by 25%.

Women’s job postings rose by 60%, reflecting growing attention to gender diversity. SMBs, with 63 million enterprises, remain vital to India’s economy, contributing 30% to GDP and employing millions.

Prominent companies like HDFC Ergo, Reliance Industries, and Titan also leveraged Apna’s platform for recruitment. As hiring continues to evolve, India’s job market expansion underscores the country’s economic resilience and technological progress.