US tariffs affect on jobs: Almost 3 lakh staff in danger in textiles and gems? Right here’s what consultants say
The steep tariffs imposed on Indian exports to the US have triggered sharp debate amongst staffing specialists, with some flagging the danger of instant job losses and others suggesting that India’s home demand and commerce diversification may soften the blow.“The current imposition of extra US tariffs is anticipated to have a direct and substantial affect on India’s employment panorama. It will particularly affect these industries relying closely on the US marketplace for enterprise continuity and development,” Genius HRTech founder, chairman and managing director R P Yadav advised PTI.
Yadav recognized textiles, auto elements, agriculture, and gems and jewelry as essentially the most weak sectors, warning that micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) will soak up the heaviest shock. He estimated that 2,00,000 to three,00,000 jobs are at instant danger, with textiles alone—being labour-intensive—probably dropping as many as 1,00,000 positions if the tariff regime stays in power for over six months.He additional cautioned that gems and jewelry hubs in Surat and SEEPZ, Mumbai, may additionally face widespread job losses on account of shrinking demand and rising prices within the US market.Nevertheless, not all consultants foresee an employment disaster. TeamLease Providers Senior Vice President Balasubramanian Anantha Narayanan argued that India’s reliance on home consumption makes its job market much less weak than China’s.“At this time limit, we aren’t seeing any indicators of a slowdown or lack of jobs. This additionally by extension implies that our jobs are largely in service of home demand too, except some sectors like ITeS amongst others. Our exports to the USA are USD 87 billion, which is roughly about 2.2 per cent of our total GDP. Largely pharma, electronics and many others. will not be affected for now, which can additional restrict the export publicity to industries akin to textiles, gems and jewelry amongst others,” he mentioned, quoted PTI.He additionally famous that the tariffs are but to take impact, leaving house for doable negotiations. “On the opposite aspect, we have additionally had a number of positives by means of the lately closed FTA with the UK and different nations. Even when these US tariffs do come about, we’ll undoubtedly determine a means of redirecting or diversifying our commerce to different markets. Due to this fact, at this time limit, we aren’t seeing any indicators of a slowdown or lack of jobs. It is an evolving scenario and we’ll get to know extra sooner or later of time,” Narayanan mentioned.In response to him, the broader drag on employment stems from world consumption slowdown, tariff uncertainties, and ongoing geopolitical conflicts.CIEL HR MD and CEO Aditya Mishra mentioned the tariff state of affairs is unsettling exporters in sectors deeply tied to the American market—together with electronics, textiles, gems and jewelry, auto elements, leather-based, footwear, shrimp and engineering items.“Even industries outdoors the direct tariff ambit, like prescribed drugs, are feeling the ripple impact by costlier upstream chemical compounds and supplies,” Mishra mentioned. He added that uncertainty may persist by the third quarter of this monetary yr as negotiations unfold.Whereas Mishra doesn’t count on widespread layoffs, he famous that firms are already adopting cost-control measures—chopping discretionary spends, streamlining manufacturing, freezing hiring, and placing stress on momentary and contractual roles. “The instant stress can be on momentary and contract roles, significantly shop-floor staff, artisans, gross sales and logistics workers, and a few mid-level managers in export-led models. It will have a cascading impact on 1000’s of MSMEs within the provide chain, which collectively account for a big share of employment,” he warned.Mishra additionally pointed to potential spillover dangers for IT and world functionality centres (GCCs). “The IT sector is already experiencing gradual spending and hiring, and this extra uncertainty may delay its restoration additional. GCCs are prone to take a cautious method to hiring and investments till there’s larger readability on commerce negotiations and market stability. If the tariff scenario persists, India’s market share within the US may shrink, resulting in longer-term repercussions for exporters and the industries that rely on them,” he mentioned.
