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Category: Staffing

Womenempowerment_Hero
July 26, 2023 BusinessStaffingBy peelworks

Women Empowerment: The evolution of women in the workplace

The world has a plethora of jobs for everyone. There are various career fields to choose from, such as Aeronautical, Biotechnology, Chemical Engineering, Dentistry, etc. While this segregation is established on the field the job is based upon, there is a different kind of segregation based on the status/gender/designation of the job. This is indicated by colours. They are White-Collar, Blue-Collar, and Pink-Collar jobs.

Blue-collar jobs involve physical labour and fieldwork. This term and segregation were first used in 1924. For example, industry workers, daily wage workers, and police officers fall under blue-collar jobs. White-collar jobs are in an office setting and do not involve strenuous physical work, unlike ‘Blue-Collar jobs’. The term came into existence in the 1930s. White-collar jobs include lawyers, accountants, and managers. These two types of jobs were and are predominantly held by men.

What Are Pink-Collar Jobs?
Historically, women took up jobs that involved care or service and these jobs were known as pink-collar jobs. The term was made popular in the 1970s by Louise Kapp Howe. Some of the jobs in this category are Nursing, Gynaecology, Hairdressing, Beauty-related, Teaching, Social work, Secretarial work, Child care, Counselling, etc.

Gender Evolution Of Pink-Collar Jobs:
Gender norms are breaking in the present. The idea that a certain job is only suitable for women and men is shifting. People are more open to pursuing their passions, defying the societal rules of the past.

Pink-collar jobs can be applied for by women or men now, as gender isn’t relevant anymore. It depends on the comfort level of the job holder and the people seeking the service. For example, gynaecologists and birth care specialists are mostly female for clients’ comfort. Hairdressers and beauticians can be men since unisex beauty salons exist now. Based on these aspects, pink-collar jobs can be chosen by either gender.

Although women have taken up various positions in the white and blue-collar segments and men are taking up traditionally women’s jobs, pink-collar jobs are still sought after by most women.

The Strides in Women’s Empowerment:
Women are natural multi-taskers and that helps them perform well at their jobs too. In the past, women were restricted to their households and later only to the pink-collar jobs, now they have risen high in all fields and handle their roles with panache and finesse.

Women who take a break for maternity or health later return to work and juggle family and work with resilience and determination. Many companies who have seen such potential in their women employees and want to ensure their careers do not get obliterated after a break, have returnee programs. This is where women undergo training before taking on their roles. As a result, they are adequately prepared for the latest demands of the job.

We, at Peel-Works, empower women by finding them the relevant job for their profile and salary expectations. We connect them with companies that are looking for candidates like them and ensure a seamless employment and recruitment process.

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Pharma_hero
May 16, 2023 StaffingBy peelworks

The upward staffing trend in India’s pharma industry

India’s advanced healthcare system has helped people all over the world. From healing the world to becoming its pharmacy hub, India’s pharmaceutical industry has witnessed remarkable growth. Ranking 3rd in production volume and 14th by value globally, India has truly become a force to reckon with in the global drug manufacturing arena.

The industry’s field force typically consists of sales representatives, medical representatives, product specialists, and key account managers, who are responsible for promoting and selling the company’s products to healthcare professionals.

Did you know that the top 10 Pharma companies employ field sales representatives totaling more than 50,000 who meet doctors everyday. Including medical devices, diagnostics, disposables, and surgical companies, the number of sales representatives crosses one million, almost one for each doctor. The industry owes its success to a cost-effective and skilled workforce groomed by a well-established educational system that produces a large number of science and engineering graduates.

These graduates are lapped up by pharma giants like Cipla, Sun Pharma, Biocon, Dr. Reddy’s, Novartis, Lupin etc. as medical sales representatives to act as ambassadors for companies, promoting prescription drugs, medications, and medical equipment while implementing strategies to increase product awareness. Pharma expos serve as channels for companies to showcase their offerings and provide a secure meeting point for face-to-face interactions with potential customers, enabling reps to collect valuable information and feedback. This increased demand for new products has led to a search for more salespeople by industry executives and recruiters.

Just to add some perspective, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories increased its field force to 7,500 in 2021-22 from 4,800 in 2017-18 while Sun Pharma added 1,000 employees to its sales force in 2021 and 2022. Cipla aims to strengthen its reach in tier 2-6 towns through sales expansion.

Biocon and Dr. Reddy’s were both recognised by US-based Science magazine for ‘Science 2022 Top Employer List. While Biocon was acknowledged for being an innovative leader in the industry, socially responsible, and having loyal employees, Dr. Reddy’s was highly rated for treating employees with respect, being socially responsible, and providing employees with autonomy.

While the Indian Pharma market is projected to grow to a whopping US$ 130 billion industry by 2023 which will also see the demand for pharma talent increase manifold with plenty of opportunities for growth, not everything is all sunshine and rainbows in the industry. Recruiters face unique challenges such as talent shortages, high turnover, strict regulatory requirements, global competition, and high hiring costs. Mankind Pharma, a leading pharmaceutical company, has reported high field staff attrition rates ranging from 20% to 33%, particularly among medical representatives aged below 30. The high attrition is due to poaching from within and outside the pharmaceutical industry, including telecom, FMCG, and retail sectors. Organisations now realise the importance of training their front line in a competitive industry. Meaningful training in consultative selling has become one of the top ways to help build employee loyalty towards the organisation and aid in better retention.

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5Issues_Hero
December 8, 2022 StaffingTipsBy peelworks

5 issue to address the high churn rate of blue collar workforce

Blue-collar workers are everywhere, from working in large industrial plants spread across thousands of acres to driving taxis. Based on research conducted the steady growth seen in the last two years the numbers are likely to rise, creating 21 lakh new blue-collar jobs in the next 12 months.

As the number of blue-collar jobs increases, the attrition rate increases hand in hand. Attrition in most verticals ranges anywhere between 40% to 300%. Now a question arises here: Why do blue-collar workers jump jobs ever so often?

The reasons mostly stem from the lack of basic benefits that apply to other jobs in the market. Here, we look at some of the key issues and their impacts that affect blue collar job seekers and organisations hiring them.

Issue 1: Reward and Recognition
Blue-collar workers typically make less than ₹27,000 a month, which is just above the poverty line of ₹25,000 per month for a family of four. Blue-collar workers are mostly in the field, but they receive far less recognition for the work done.

Issue 2: Lack of Benefits
Blue-collar workers are not offered portable perks and benefits that are typically available to temporary, and self-employed workers by job providers. There is a lack of proactive offering of benefits like training opportunities, financial stability, flexibility, career growth, and upskilling for blue-collar job seekers by employers. 

Issue 3: Absence of Upward Mobility
Blue-collar needs like education, skills development, and a focus on well-being aren’t different from white-collar needs. Simply said, there hasn’t been a tech solution designed with blue-collar workers in mind.

Issue 4: Falling Prey to Scams
Blue-collar workers are especially susceptible to false employment generated by dishonest recruiting firms due to growing mechanisation, lack of available positions, and pressing financial requirements. They unwittingly fall into debt traps and, in extreme situations, even commit data theft. 

Issue 5: Threat and Impact of Attrition on both Employees and Organisations
One of the most delicate concerns that corporate organisations are worried about is employee attrition. On the one hand, there are more unemployed people, but on the other, millennials have a relatively high attrition rate. This poses a huge risk to the company’s reputation and make it difficult to find the right replacements. This in turn hampers a company’s reputation while causing regular disruptions in workflow management and low employee morale.

While these issues have impacted and continue to impact blue-collar workforce, more opportunities for local employment are mushrooming owing to the growing need for logistics professionals. This also comes with the added benefits of fair pay with lower living expenses and achieving financial security.

However, a huge effort is still needed to provide sustainable solutions to the issues faced by the blue-collar workforce. Organisations that have focused on the needs of white-collar workers, now need a reliable partner that understands the blue-collar ecosystem, its needs and pain points, and can help it improve its well-being. 

We at Peel-works understand the huge disparity in the availability of HR solutions for blue-collar workers and white-collar workers. We are actively working to fill in this gap with our solutions to overcome on-ground problems and help in improving productivity of the blue-collar workers.

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1
October 26, 2022 StaffingBy peelworks

Is India’s Blue Collar Staffing Headed for a Crisis?

Growing technological advancements had already started to alter the nature of the employment market for blue-collar, grey-collar, and white-collar professionals before the terrible epidemic shook the globe. Blue-collar workers were severely harmed by the COVID-19 virus-induced lockdown-induced uncertainty.

An estimated 200 million workers are classified as blue-collar, frontline, feet-on-street workforce in India. With rapidly developing technology, companies prefer automating as many blue-collar jobs as possible, but when it comes to the FMCG, Retail, and general trade blue-collar ecosystem in India and their growing issues, automation is just the tip of the iceberg. The troubles Indian blue-collar employees confront are getting worse for a variety of reasons, including lack of literacy and skills, the disorganized character of the sector, and gaps in the procedures created to properly handle their problems. These factors taken together are leading the workforce toward a crisis.

One of the most critical problem that exists even today for the blue-collar staff is the problem of employment uncertainty. Online job boards, forums, and other trustworthy, and simple ways to find and land a job have become popular over the past few years. However, blue-collar employees still significantly rely on traditional techniques for finding work, such as informal connections and middlemen. Local labour contractors and recruiting firms assist labourers in finding work, but often charge high commissions and cannot be relied upon to consistently offer chances for work in a supportive environment.

This lack of stable and supportive working conditions has furthered the already existing problem of high attrition rates among blue-collar workers across industries.

While this certainly affects the blue-collared workers, recruiters and organisations are battling with high costs of hiring, training, and retaining as well as delays in the completion of projects resulting in a lesser than favourable balance sheet for both the organization and its employees.

While these two issues have plagued the blue-collar workforce in India, there is much anticipation that this year’s festive season will provide opportunities for the blue-collar workforce, who were otherwise unemployed during the larger part of the pandemic, from the FMCG, CPG retail, and hospitality sectors. While this is a stop-gap arrangement we are of the firm belief that technology and management will reshape the blue-collar workspace in the coming years.

In fact, the strides made in the fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning are already enabling staffing firms catering to blue-collar recruitment, like 1Sf built by Peel-Works, to digitise and maintain large databases. This has led to a tremendous opportunity for industries that have voluminous and continuous labor requirements, to explore the option of off-roll staffing which helps them cut costs, meet targets, and maintain a favourable financial status. As India’s largest staffing aggregator, 1Sf has fully embraced the digitisation bandwagon through which we have had the privilege of catering to some of India’s biggest FMCG players while adapting to the sector’s complex problems.

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