Israel's war on Iran to hit Indian workforce

Israel opening a warfront with Iran will impact workforce mobility from India to many parts of the Middle East. Recruitment companies with clients in the IT, energy, construction and retail sectors estimate a drop in demand for fresh workforce as the crisis escalates. Some manpower companies had calls from candidates on probable changes in joining dates and the hiring firms have held meetings since Friday.
Mint has learnt that both blue and white-collared workforce who head to the region every year for opportunities will be reluctant to relocate to even bordering countries that are yet to face the heat.
'We currently have 35 executives from mid to senior management levels scheduled to join roles across Kuwait and other Middle Eastern countries. These positions are primarily within the energy sector, including oil field operations and a significant number of these professionals are US nationals," said Manish C., managing partner, Greentree Advisory Services.
Also read: Javier Blas: An Israel-Iran war may not rattle the oil market
The firm's clients are in the banking and energy sectors, amongst others. 'Since Friday, we have received several calls from candidates expressing concern, particularly those relocating with their families. The hiring companies have assured us that they are closely monitoring the situation and will keep all stakeholders informed," the managing partner told Mint.
In the early hours of Friday, Israel attacked Iran's nuclear bases and called it Operation Rising Lion. Until now, the Middle East crisis has largely involved Israel's attack on Gaza. The external affairs ministry in its statement noted that it was 'monitoring the evolving situation, including reports related to attacks on nuclear sites".
A steady stream of blue- and white-collar workers regularly head to countries like Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, which share maritime borders with Iran. 'Our Missions in both countries are in contact with the Indian community. All Indian nationals in the region are advised to exercise caution, stay safe and follow local security advisories," the external affairs ministry said in a statement on its website.
Also read: Escalating Israel-Iran conflict to keep markets on boil in near term
'We hire IT employees from India for the Middle East and also from Lebanon and Egypt for the Middle East region. We are focusing on this region extensively, but now if the war escalates and spreads to nearby areas, then our hiring gets impacted," said Anshuman Das, chief executive and co-founder of Careernet, a talent solutions provider.
According to government data from July 2024, there are 92,58,302 skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labourers from India employed in various sectors in the Middle-Eastern countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. In fact, Israel too has recruited thousands of skilled workers from India over the last couple of years.
Genius Consultants, which caters to retail and construction clients in the Middle East, estimates an immediate hit to the number of workers accepting offers. 'We estimate a 35% drop in the hiring numbers in the UAE region," noted R.P. Yadav, chairman and managing director of the recruitment firm.
Also read: Who is Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi? Iran names new Army chief after Israeli strikes kill commander: 'Declaration of war…'
Ironically, the Middle East and Russia are some of the prominent regions that attract Indian workers because the clients often pay higher compensation than their Indian counterparts. In fact, this exodus has hit Indian construction and real estate firms, which have flagged a shortage of skilled and unskilled workers.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Indian Express

12 minutes ago

• Indian Express

Delhi govt mulls bringing back private liquor vends under new excise policy

Private players could make a comeback in Delhi's liquor shops. The Delhi BJP government, which is preparing a new excise policy, is considering reintroducing private liquor shops in the Capital — just as it was in the old excise regime before 2021. The government plans to implement the new policy by July 1 with an aim to increase revenue, curb corruption and bring transparency. According to sources, the government is likely to provide licences to private players to provide a good walk-in experience for customers. 'About 100-150 private liquor shops, mostly in malls and other premium locations, are being considered. The numbers will be finalised once the policy is ready. The modalities of how to issue the licence, whether through an e-auction or e-lottery, are currently being discussed. A meeting of a high-level committee set up to prepare the policy, which is headed by the Chief Secretary, was also held on Friday. Issues such as the number of shops, licensing, etc, were discussed,' sources said. Under the pre-2021 policy, both government and private liquor shops operated in Delhi. In November 2021, the government — the AAP was in power at the time — had exited the liquor business and handed things over to private vendors, with an aim to cut down corruption. The policy soon ran into controversy and investigations by multiple agencies like the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation. In 2022, the government scrapped this policy and brought back the old excise regime — but only liquor shops run by government corporations were allowed to operate. Almost all top AAP — including former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, and former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia — were jailed in the case. Currently, a major issue facing Delhi is the unavailability of popular and good quality brands of whisky, beer, vodka, gin, and several others. 'Some popular brands are not in Delhi as their parent company was blacklisted from selling liquor in the national capital following complaints of irregularities and court cases during the implementation of the now-scrapped liquor policy… Less popular brands have entered the scene, which has pushed customers to neighbouring states… The government is planning to increase the availability of popular brands and is likely to reintroduce some that are currently not available in Delhi shops…,' said sources. Popular choices like Chivas Regal, Blenders Pride and Royal Stag, part of the Pernod Ricard brand, are not available in Delhi. Pernod Ricard India's application for an L-1 licence was rejected earlier. Benoy Babu, a regional manager at PRI, was a witness in the CBI's excise case. Babu was eventually arrested by the ED. Meanwhile, discussions on rationalising brand licence fees and retail margins are also underway, said sources, adding that excise duty and retail licensing are also likely to be increased under the new policy. 'The retail margin cap is Rs 50 for Indian-Made Foreign Liquor and Rs 100 for foreign liquor. This is on a per-bottle basis. Government-run shops have monopolised the retail business by pushing less popular brands at the range of Rs 400 to Rs 600, instead of stocking premium brands. Also, cheaper brands sell fast… Thus, discussions are on to rationalise these margins to increase revenue as well as make premium brands available for customers,' said sources. Industry sources said private retailers have started searching for properties in the city to set up shop. Currently, there are over 700 liquor shops in Delhi run by the four government corporations — Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation, Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation, Delhi Consumer's Cooperative Whole-sale Store and Delhi State Civil Supplies Corporation. The Excise Department has asked the four corporations to carry out document validation online by June 30. Last week, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said several reforms will be incorporated into the new policy, including scientific testing of liquor quality, digitisation of the sale system, curbing illegal sales, and ensuring transparency in the licensing process. The high-level committee is also studying policies implemented in Delhi earlier and those in neighbouring states.

News18

15 minutes ago

• News18

Saudi Arabia condemns blatant Israeli aggressions against Iran

Abu Dhabi, Jun 21 (AP) Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan has condemned 'blatant Israeli aggressions against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which undermine its sovereignty and security, constitute a clear violation of international laws and norms, and threaten the security and stability of the region," the state-run Saudi Press Agency has reported. Speaking at Friday's meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul, he called for 'the immediate cessation of military operations, the avoidance of escalation, and a return to the negotiation track between Iran and the international community." Iran and Saudi Arabia were long regional arch-rivals but have normalized relations in recent years. Riyadh was quick to side publicly with Tehran after Israel launched a surprise barrage of strikes on Iran last week. Bin Farhan also reiterated Saudi Arabia's support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The kingdom and France had been set to co-chair a conference in New York this month on the topic, which was postponed due to the outbreak of the Israel-Iran war. (AP) SCY SCY

The Hindu

25 minutes ago

• The Hindu

FATF report links dual-use cargo seized by India in 2020 to Pakistan missile agency

A dual-use equipment seized by India from a Pakistan-bound merchant vessel in 2020 is linked to Islamabad's National Development Complex, which is involved in the country's missile development programme, a new report by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global anti-terror financing watchdog, has said. The report listed the case under a section on the misuse of the maritime and shipping sectors, including to transport a range of commodities, including dual-use equipment. 'In 2020, Indian Customs authorities seized an Asian-flagged ship bound for Pakistan. During an investigation, Indian authorities confirmed that documents mis-declared the shipment's dual-use items,' the FATF report said. 'Indian investigators certified the items for shipment to be 'autoclaves', which are used for sensitive high-energy materials, and for insulation and chemical coating of missile motors,' the report said. It said these sensitive items are included in dual-use export control lists of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). The bill of lading of the seized cargo provided evidence of the 'link between the importer and the National Development Complex, which is involved in the development of long-range ballistic missiles', it said. The export of equipment such as autoclaves without formal approval from various authorities is a violation of the existing law, the FATF said. Pakistan's National Development Complex (NDC) has played a crucial role in the development of Pakistan's missile programme. India seized the dual-use equipment from merchant vessel Da Cui Yun at Kandla port in Gujarat on February 3, 2020. Loopholes The report noted significant vulnerabilities in the global financial system in countering the financing of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). "Despite the grave threat posed by proliferation financing, only 16 per cent of countries assessed by the FATF and its global network have demonstrated high or substantial effectiveness" in a process that evaluates the implementation of targeted financial sanctions under the United Nations Security Council resolutions on proliferation. The report said that unless the public and private sectors urgently bolster technical compliance and effectiveness, those seeking to finance WMD proliferation will continue to exploit weaknesses in the existing controls. The report provided a detailed analysis of the evolving methods and techniques used to evade proliferation financing-related sanctions. 'Illicit actors are employing increasingly sophisticated methods to evade sanctions and circumvent export controls,' it said.