Jun 04, 2026 15:50 pm IST

Opinion | Forget Coding. The World's Hottest Jobs Now Belong To Plumbers, Electricians

Eighty-five per cent of companies in blue-collar industries say they have unfilled vacancies, even as the world's most talented techies are being laid off by the thousands.

Deepanshu Mohan, Ankur Singh Deepanshu Mohan Columnist Ankur Singh Columnist

Deepanshu Mohan Columnist

Ankur Singh Columnist

For much of the past three decades, India's labour market has been defined by a familiar aspiration. Parents wanted engineers, managers, software developers, consultants, and government officers. Policymakers celebrated rising university enrolment. Young people were encouraged to leave manual trades behind in pursuit of white-collar mobility.

The assumption seemed self-evident. Economic development would gradually reduce the importance of blue-collar work while increasing demand for degrees, professional services, and knowledge-based occupations.

Around the world, that assumption is beginning to break down.

Across advanced economies, ageing populations, shrinking workforces, and collapsing birth rates are creating labour shortages not primarily in finance, consulting, or software, but in occupations that require physical presence. Electricians, welders, plumbers, construction workers, machine operators, technicians, caregivers, and logistics workers have become some of the most sought-after employees in the global economy.

The consequences of this shift are only beginning to be understood. For India, they could be profound.

The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) estimates that the working-age population across member countries will decline by 8% by 2060. During the same period, annual public spending on pensions and healthcare is expected to rise by roughly 3% of GDP. The old-age dependency ratio has already climbed from 19% in 1980 to 31% today and is projected to reach 52% by 2060.

These demographic shifts are no longer abstract forecasts. They are already appearing in labour........

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