India Inc’s quiet during youth unrest
London/Melbourne: Founders and CEOs of India's largest companies have routinely expressed concern about the country's widening skills gap, declining productivity, and the challenge of preparing
London/Melbourne: Founders and CEOs of India's largest companies have routinely expressed concern about the country's widening skills gap, declining productivity, and the challenge of preparing young people for the workforce. Anand Mahindra, for instance, had warned that joblessness and unaddressed skill gaps could fuel social unrest. Yet, when such a 'prophesised' social unrest finally did erupt - in the form of NEET protests in support of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) - Big Business kept quiet.At first glance, it might seem like businesses have nothing to do with the issues and demands raised by CJP. But businesses are, indeed, involved, at every stage. Two decades of extraordinary wealth creation by India Inc has not translated into employment at the scale needed to absorb a growing young workforce. The employment that has been generated is largely precarious and, in many cases, exploitative, especially in gig work that is yet to be provided the security of formal economy work.These conditions have contributed in no small way to the despair and anger many young Indians feel.
So, the cause for anger transcends exam paper leaks, and spills into livelihood issues. Much of the mainstream electronic media, sustained by Big Business, continued a narrative that visibly mismatched what was being witnessed on social media feeds that bypassed the usual 'mediator'.AI-enabled facial recognition software and surveillance technologies like Meta AI glasses were, in a way, even product placements. Ironically, smaller businesses and enterprises had to shut down if they were in and around the protest sites across the country.Companies also rely on university students for low-cost work through internships and campus placements. Professional specialised degrees like accountancy, medicine, nursing and others require students to work with organisations at little to no cost as the condition of the credential itself. These steps increase costs and stakes of entry into an already precarious job market.
The exam paper leaks only served to aggravate them.Businesses, especially those that have benefited from close ties to a government - central or state - have a direct stake in speaking up when policy failure threatens stability. Not only is leaving democratic institutions unprotected and abusing the rule of law bad for society, but it's also bad for business. Nor does India Inc need convincing that corruption compromises efficiency. It is among the most cited constraints for 'ease of doing business'.There's also a reputational calculus. Firms that take progressive, credible stances build goodwill with the workforce and customers they will have to depend on for decades to come. The CJP protests have made visible how disconnected much of corporate India remains from Gen Z, the very cohort it's hiring from and selling to.Gen Z has not yet explicitly targeted brands, except for calling some of them out for remaining silent, or using their campaigns for parodies.
The BriefWire