Hiring outlook improves to 5.4% for October-March, with e-commerce and tech start-ups leading

Staffing company TeamLease Services has released its Employment Outlook Report for the second half of the financial year 2026-27, covering October 2026 to March 2027. The report estimates the net employment change at 5.4% for the period, against 4.7% in the first half. It is described as the highest level in the past four half-years.

The report says the improvement reflects growing employer confidence. About 60% of establishments plan to increase their staff, 24% expect no change and 16% anticipate cuts. The main factors affecting staff size are economic conditions (67%), business growth or restructuring (43%) and technological advancement (40%).

Among sectors, e-commerce and tech start-ups lead hiring with a net employment change of 12.6%. They are followed by travel and hospitality (12.3%) and retail (10.3%). Automotive (10.1%), EV and EV infrastructure (9.7%) and banking (9.2%) have also shown strong hiring signals.

By size of establishment, 66% of large companies are considering adding staff. The share is 59% among mid-sized businesses and 53% among start-ups and small businesses. Among cities, Bengaluru leads hiring at 68%, followed by Hyderabad (61%) and Pune (60%). The report says Pune recorded the biggest increase this half-year.

Hiring demand is mostly in functions that directly affect business growth, chiefly sales and marketing (64%), IT (50%) and finance (48%). Demand is also rising fast for skills such as digital literacy (59%), customer experience management (51%), communication skills (48%) and adaptability (44%).

Finding skilled talent remains a major challenge for expansion. Some 72% of employers who want to expand expect moderate to severe difficulty in hiring. The challenge is greatest in IT (39%), sales and marketing (38%) and engineering (32%). Filling a position takes 35 to 45 days on average.