Labour shortages, rising attrition: L&T chairman SN Subrahmanyan highlights challenges in construction sector | Mint

Larsen & Toubro’s Chairman and Managing Director, SN Subrahmanyan, recently pointed out an increasing challenge in India’s construction industry—labour shortages caused by workers’ unwillingness to relocate, while speaking at CII South Global Linkages in Chennai.

Subrahmanyan further said that although construction is vital for national development, the industry is facing challenges due to a shortage of available workers.

He highlighted out that while migration remains a concern in several countries, India is dealing with a unique issue where many laborers are reluctant to relocate for work. This is creating growing challenges in carrying out large-scale infrastructure projects crucial for national development, including roads and power plants.

Labours unwilling to move

Subrahmanyan highlighted that L&T has a workforce of nearly 4 lakh laborers. However, due to high attrition rates, the company effectively recruits around 1.6 million workers each year. Recruitment and mobilization strategies have undergone significant changes, with digital communication replacing traditional methods. For instance, carpenters now receive job notifications via messages, enabling them to choose whether to accept the offer. Despite these advancements, assembling the required workforce remains a major challenge.

“For employing 4 lakh labourers, we employed 1.6 million labourers. We have a database of 4 million people with us, their names, their Jan Dhan bank account, their Aadhaar number, the village they come from, their skillsets. There is a site in the western part of the country, where I am supposed to mobilise 50,000 labourers. I need people, but they are not willing to come,” Subrahmanyan was quoted as saying.