THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Covid-19 outbreak deeply affected the IT industry, as many lost their jobs while others suffered salary cuts. Subsequently, many techies raised their concern with Prathidhwani, a welfare organisation for IT employees of Kerala. This resulted in the launch of a job portal in June. Four months later, around 75 persons won employment through the portal. A much improved, seamless version of the platform was launched online by Sasi Pilacheri Meethal, CEO, IT Parks on Tuesday.
According to Nishin T N, vice president, Prathidhwani, around 1,200 candidates have registered with the portal and nearly 1,500 jobs have been listed. “The existing features on the website has been improved. The new version will provide better navigation through the job listings. The improvements were done based on suggestions made by candidates and employers,” adds Nishin.
Out of the 1,200 candidates that registered, 350 suffered job loss due to Covid-19. Around 100 companies also registered with the portal since its launch. “A candidate has the option to mention such details when registering.
The employers can also filter candidates based on it. Those who lost their jobs during the pandemic get privilege over others. But those looking to switch careers can also make use of the portal,” says Nishin. After the revised version was launched, around 14 new companies, including RMESI, have signed up. “The response we are getting is tremendous. Right now, we are focusing on posting job vacancies in IT sector alone. Though candidates from any part of the country can apply for jobs, we are focusing on local candidates,” he says.
The ‘Technical Forum’ of the organisation is also conducting weekend sessions for techies to upgrade their existing skills. All the services offered by the organisation are free of cost. “We believe that the portal will be vital even post-pandemic,” adds Nishin. The organisation also identified around 31 professionals who were unemployed by the pandemic and provided them financial assistance of Rs 5,000 each.