Hospitality industry faces huge talent crunch; to add 1 million jobs in next few years: Experts

Mumbai, Jun 19 (PTI) The hospitality industry is expected to add around 1 million jobs in the next few years as the sector is grappling with huge shortage of talent amid rapid expansion after the Covid-19 pandemic, say experts.

The current demand-supply gap of talent in the industry stands at around 55-60 per cent, indicating a substantial mismatch between the needs and the available talent pool, Randstad India Director, Professional Talent Solutions, Sanjay Shetty told PTI.

Issues related to talent shortage was fuelled by the post-pandemic boom in demand, Shetty said, adding that the the momentum is expected to continue in the next few years with at least a million jobs being created.

According to industry leaders, the overall hiring has more than quadrupled post-Covid with entry-level positions emerging as the most sought-after in the past two years.

Some companies are upskilling existing talent or recruiting from other industries to fill the void, while others have intensified efforts to attract and retain talent by offering competitive salaries, benefits, and career growth.

TeamLease Degree Apprenticeship Vice President and Business Head Dhriti Prasanna Mahanta said, "It is estimated that in 2023, the tourism and hospitality industry provided employment to around 11.1 million people. By 2024, it is expected to require a workforce of 11.8 million individuals. This demand is predicted to increase to 14.8 million by 2028, with an annual growth of 16.5 per cent."

Balasubramanian A, VP and Business Head at Staffing, TeamLease Services, also flagged the vast gap between current manpower and future requirements, saying, "data from the Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council (THSC) indicates that in 2023, only a fraction of available seats for hospitality management programmes were filled".