The ‘knitwear capital’ of India, Tirupur, is facing a workforce crisis as thousands of migrant workers who returned home to vote in the recently finished Lok Sabha elections are unwilling to come back. The dilemma arises at a moment when US export inquiries are beginning to show early indications of revival.
An estimated 100,000–150,000 labourers are needed, most of them are from West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Assam. These workers believe that their home towns will see job prospects due to the new government’s implementation of development initiatives in the area.
The Tiruppur Exporters Association (TEA) has initiated a massive job drive in response to the workforce shortfall. Additionally, it has made the decision to pay migrant workers more upon their return.
“In the last three months (March-May), we have seen orders from the US climbing by 10 per cent compared to the same period of the previous year,” said K M Subramanian, president of TEA. “Over the past few years, the economic slowdown caused by the Covid pandemic, the US and European economic recession, the Russia-Ukraine war and the resulting industrial recession had hard-hit the apparel export business from Tirupur. We are witnessing early signs of recovery.”
The need for labour has increased in tandem with Tirupur textile exporters’ strengthening order book position. Today, there is a great need for merchandisers, helpers, checkers, and tailors.
In Uttar Pradesh, Gorakhpur and Bundelkhand are developing new clothing clusters. These regions are becoming the destination for clothing manufacturers from other states who are setting up export plants.
“So, it will be easier for the workers to get jobs. It is also beneficial for the migrant workers from Bihar and Odisha as they are neighbouring states and travel time to the homeland will be much less,” said Lalit Thukral, president of Noida Apparel Export Cluster.
In light of this, the TEA president stated that, contingent on the size and manufacturing capacity of the unit, they have requested that the Tirupur plants raise wages by 5–10 per cent.
He added that big industrial firms will hire unskilled workers with no experience at all, and some are even open to hiring those with little to no experience.
