Mumbai, 2nd May 2022: This International Workers Day (Labour Day), TeamLease EdTech has announced their partnership with Workers Union Support (WUS), to launch affordable higher educational programs for workers from the low and medium income group and their dependents. A progressive step towards improving the employability of the demographic who often face financial constraints; the ’Padhai Bhi -Kamai Bhi’ initiative was launched today at 12pm at New Delhi, in the presence of Dr Rajiv Kumar, Ex-Chairman of Niti Ayog; Mr Ajai Garg, Senior Director – Ministry of Electronics and Informational Technology and Mr Nikhil Agarwal, CEO – IIT Kanpur (FIRST and AIIDE).
Through this partnership, TeamLease EdTech will be offering Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Programs which will enable students to get an undergraduate or master’s degree, while earning on the job and gathering industry experience. The programs are structured to also provide financial support to students, thus making higher education more accessible and affordable, while improving the overall employability of Indian youth.
“Barely one in five Indians in the labor force is skilled. For more than 20 years, TeamLease has been connecting job seekers with employers. Worker Union Support (WUS) is backed by a team empowering ‘Low-medium income (LMI) workers’ for the last 40 years. This association between TeamLease Edtech and WUS will provide workers with the opportunity to upgrade their education and their skills”, said Prasoon Sharma, Founder & CEO of Worker Union Support.
“This is a very important association for us in our mission of ‘Making India Employable’. With top-notch online education infrastructure and excellent student support, TeamLease Edtech is going to provide affordable education by some of the best universities in the country. This association would prove most valuable for the workers of the union and their dependents who can dream of a better future, without sacrificing the scope of higher education. Through this path-breaking partnership, we aim to create a self-sustainable model for the workers and their dependents to pursue higher education. Over 400 leading companies and 45 universities are a part of this network”, said, Mr. Jaideep Kewalramani, Head of Employability Business & COO, TeamLease EdTech.
Sharing his thoughts on the initiative, Dr Rajiv Kumar, Ex-Chairman of Niti Ayog, said, “This initiative is significant, and partnerships like these will help take things forward. You already have 400+ employers and more than 45 universities on this network, including workers and trainers. All of them coming together will create great energy! I recently found out that almost 83% of workers are unskilled and untrained, which is a huge number. Workers who are entering the workforce now are getting trained but workers who already exist in the system are not getting upskilled. Hence this is a tremendous and vital initiative, and I really want to congratulate you on addressing this gap. I want to take this opportunity to mention that everyone needs to pay equal attention to apprenticeship and education; otherwise, it will be very difficult to match the industry’s demand with a skilled workforce.”
Through these courses, students would have the option to choose from a total of 75 programs, both long-term and short-term. While long-term graduate and post-graduate courses will provide the opportunity to earn a stable income while studying, it will also create job opportunities for the students as they complete their education. Short-term courses on the other hand are designed to boost the employability quotient of the learners, making them more desirable for the employers. Students can benefit from courses that fall under soft skills, financial skills, leadership skills, marketing skills etc.
