200,000 New Jobs Likely To Be Created in Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Industries in Next 12-18 Months, TeamLease Report

Hotels in India are increasing their workforce across all segments as they add more rooms and enter new markets amid a strong increase in business and leisure travel.

TeamLease’s vice president and head of consumer, hospitality, and ecommerce, Balasubramanian A, stated that they are recruiting for a mix of permanent, temporary, and gig jobs.

Hotel operators who cut jobs during the Covid period are now hiring thousands to meet expansion plans and fill vacancies due to high attrition.

TeamLease Services, a staffing firm, predicts that 200,000 jobs will be created in the hotel, restaurant, and tourism industries over the next 12-18 months. According to Balasubramanian A, vice president and head of consumer, hospitality, and ecommerce at TeamLease, the hotel industry will account for approximately half of these.

Hotels are expanding their workforce and entering new markets due to increased business and leisure travel demand. According to Balasubramanian, the jobs they are recruiting for are a mix of permanent, temporary, and gig positions.

“We are planning to add about 2,000 rooms this year across our various properties and are looking at hiring a total of around 5,000 across levels,” said Chander K Baljee, chairman and managing director at mid-tier Royal Orchid Hotels. Attrition rates are also high—up to 30-50% per month for most small and mid-tier hotels—resulting in an increase in replacement hiring, according to industry executives and staffing firms.

“We saw a 30-35% attrition rate among our 8,000 employees. “This needs to be filled,” Baljee stated.

Royal Orchid intends to launch three new brands, including an upscale five-star brand for which it has signed a new 300-room hotel in Mumbai.

Its current portfolio includes a little more than 100 hotels with nearly 6,000 rooms. The majority of its upcoming 2,000-room inventory will be in Western India, followed by the north and east.

According to TeamLease, the number of annual domestic tourists in India is expected to increase by 10 million over the next one to two years, from 180-200 million currently. Foreign tourist arrivals, meanwhile, are expected to increase by 20% over the same period and triple in five to six years from around 10 million per year today. The hotel industry will benefit directly from this growth.

Fortune Hotels’ managing director, Samir MC, predicts an 8-10% increase in hiring this year compared to last, citing ambitious expansion plans.

Fortune Hotels operates over 5,000 rooms in 56 cities. He added that it is hiring for front desk, housekeeping, administrative, and food and beverage positions.

Lemon Tree, a mid-tier hotel operator, plans to add 2,000 rooms and hire 3,000-4,000 employees in the coming fiscal year, according to chairman and managing director Patu Keswani. “This (hiring) includes the attrition refill numbers of 1,500,” he stated.

The hotel industry has recovered from significant job losses and reduced staffing levels caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. We have seen a 20-25% increase in hotel demand over the previous year. Alok Kumar, president of ManpowerGroup India, stated that demand is coming from both existing and new hotels.

“With travel restrictions lifted and consumer confidence restored, leisure and business travel are on the rise.” The demand for hotel rooms has reached an all-time high, forcing hotels to hire more employees to maintain service standards,” he added.

Front desk agents, concierges, guest relations managers, housekeepers, and maintenance personnel are among the most in-demand positions.

Some specialised roles, such as maintenance technician, chefs, and recreation manager, are also in demand, with Manpower demand exceeding 35% last quarter compared to the previous year, he said.

“We have seen at least a 20% y-o-y increase in demand for manpower from the hotels and hospitality segment,” said Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO of Ciel HR Services. “We are seeing a lot of demand for professionals in sales, marketing, digital marketing, technical staff, HR, among others,” he stated.

According to a recent report from ratings firm ICRA, the hotel industry is projected to grow revenue by 7-9% in fiscal 2025.

Travel platforms have also increased hiring as leisure and business travel demand has increased.