Close to a year after the decriminalisation of homosexuality in India, Bengaluru will host what is touted to be one of the country’s first job fair for the LGBTQ community this July.
The event is being organised by Pride Circle, a two-year-old platform that engages with working individuals, as well as representatives from MNCs and Indian companies across the country. Pride Circle intends to take job fair, ‘RISE’ (Re-imagining Inclusion for Social Equity) to 10 cities that it is active in, with the aim of creating 1,000 jobs by 2020.
Srini Ramaswamy, Co-founder of Pride Circle, said around 50 companies are expected to participate in the Bengaluru event, offering jobs across IT, front desk, admin and housekeeping, among others. Candidates will have to pre-register and walk-ins will not be allowed.
“We also put together India’s first resume database for the community around two weeks ago, which has candidates who have been home-schooled to those with PhDs. We will be masking the personal details and forwarding the resumes to the companies. Interviews will be scheduled on the day of the event and that is the first time company representatives will get to meet the candidates,” he said. The database has around 80 resumes so far.
Candidates will not be charged for the event, while attendees and corporates will have to pay a fee.
“We have also partnered with all NGOs working in the LGBTQ space to mobilise the community. We decided to start off in Bengaluru because acceptance is higher in the city, as are opportunities. Apart from the day-long conference, wherein well-known names will speak, as well as recruitments, we will also have around 20 booths set up by queer-owned businesses to offer insights about the work they are doing,” said Mr. Ramaswamy.
The job fair, he said, was conceptualised as there was little “affirmative action” from companies after Section 377 was struck down by the Supreme Court in September 2018.
“Companies came out with logos in support, and there were some good steps where a few from the trans community were hired for front desk and admin jobs. But there was no effort to create a hiring process. We want to create an appetite for hiring members of the community and ensuring a conducive work environment for them,” he added.
The organisers have also taken inputs from their counterparts in Japan and the USA, who have held similar events.
Those interested can write to rise@thepridecircle.com. The event will be held on July 12 at Hotel Lalit Ashok.
EOM
