Skill, Labour, Talent for MSMEs: There has been a 78 per cent increase in the participation of high-skilled workers in contractual work, said work-as-a-service platform Awign in a press statement.
The surge is attributed to IT companies’ focus on cost optimization amid a slowdown in western markets, leading to significant layoffs in the sector. As a result, companies are turning to independent contractors as a means to control workforce costs.
This shift has led to a staggering 157 per cent rise in demand for gig workers in the IT sector, creating numerous employment opportunities. Awign’s platform highlighted the most sought-after gig work positions, which include Java, Python, React, Vue, Angular, Data Science, Full-Stack development, Go lang, ML, Microservices, and more. Additionally, companies are increasingly hiring gig workers at the mid-managerial level with 2-7 years of experience.
Layoffs.fyi, a layoff tracking platform, provided data indicating that 164,709 employees were laid off by 1,058 tech companies in 2022. Globally, over 200,000 employees faced similar circumstances in 800 tech companies. These figures underscore the growing need for flexible talent solutions in the industry.
Speaking on the trend, Annanya Sarthak, Co-Founder and CEO, of Awign said, ”In the current landscape of cost-cutting, business optimisation, and layoffs, we are witnessing a surge in high-skilled gig workers’ participation in the gig economy. Enterprises recognise the advantages of tapping into this talent pool for highly-skilled professionals on-demand, leading to cost savings and operational efficiency.”
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The majority of gig workers are concentrated in Tier-1 cities, with Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Mumbai being the top hubs, accounting for nearly half of the workforce. Tier-2 cities have seen a notable 35 per cent increase, while Tier-3 cities contribute 15 per cent of the total gig workers.
Founded in 2016, Awign has 1.5 million gig workers registered on its platform catering to over 175 enterprises.