A groundbreaking report has flipped the script on India’s job geography: 70 percent of opportunities thrive in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Quess Corp’s findings detail Tier-3’s dominant 40 percent contribution, Tier-2’s solid 29 percent, dwarfing Tier-1’s 31 percent.
BFSI and manufacturing lead Tier-3 employment with over 45 percent, trailed by retail’s 33 percent stake. This sectoral mix is fostering sustainable growth in underserved regions.
Fast-rising cities—Coimbatore, Indore, Surat, Vadodara, Noida, Lucknow—are employment magnets, boosted by consumer spending and infrastructure like industrial corridors.
CEO Lohit Bhatia of Quess Corp stated, ‘Expansion in retail, manufacturing zones, and service decentralization is redistributing jobs from metros to emerging urban pockets.’
Core sectors driving this include retail, BFSI, EMP I/manufacturing, telecom, FMCG/FMCD, and logistics, with openings in operations, sales, plant roles, and supply chains—hallmarks of formal sector expansion.
Drawing from 483,000 employees, 64 percent are youth under 30, and 55 percent are short-tenured, highlighting fluid employment tied to projects and seasons.
Early FY2026 saw 26,000+ new UANs, integrating informal labor into PF, ESI, and insurance frameworks. Nationwide yet Tier-2/3-focused, this trend bolsters social protections, signaling a democratized job market.