New Delhi, April 9: After witnessing an uptick in the past three months, hiring activity in March saw a minor drop of 1.1 per cent owing to the ongoing appraisal season, according to job portal Naukri.com.
The Naukri Job Speak index - which gauges online hiring activity -- employment levels for India Inc in March fell 1.1 per cent compared to February. On a year-on-year basis, however, the index rose to 11.5 per cent.
The index had moved up 3 per cent in December 2012, 10 per cent in January and a further 4 per cent in February led by sectors like software services, business process outsourcing (BPO) and pharma which had been witnessing positive hiring trends.
"We have noticed a small correction after three successive months of growth in the Naukri Job Speak Index of 3 per cent, 10 per cent and 4 per cent in December 2012, January 2013 and February 2013, respectively," said Ambarish Raghuvanshi, CFO of Info Edge India, which owns Naukri.com.
"While some of this can be attributed to seasonality, business confidence levels, which play a strong role in hiring intentions, continue to be fragile. A sustainable positive trend will emerge once the economy and the environment are seen to be in a growth mode," Mr Raghuvanshi added.
Traditionally, March has always been a month where recruitment slows across sectors due to appraisals.
An industry-wise analysis shows hiring in IT, software, auto and oil and gas witnessed a dip in March compared to February's levels. However, hiring in pharma, construction and BPO sectors remained positive.
Hiring activity in the IT enabled sector increased by 8 per cent in March over February, while that in functional areas like banking and insurance fell by a record 13 per cent. Other key sectors like IT, accounts, marketing and HR also witnessed lower hiring numbers in the range of 3 per cent to 7 per cent.
Among metros, Bengaluru and Pune maintained steady hiring levels, while Hyderabad witnessed a 5 per cent increased in the index in March over February. Delhi and Mumbai saw a 5 per cent dip, whereas Chennai saw the maximum dip of 11 per cent among the top seven cities after two months of consecutive of upward movement.
