New Delhi, Feb 27 : In the deepening layoff season, French major Thales on Monday said it plans to hire more than 12,000 new employees, including 550 in India, to support its strong growth trajectory in its three core markets -- aerospace, defence and security, and digital identity and security. The Group will hire 5,500 new employees in France, 1,050 in the UK, 600 in Australia and 540 in the US, apart from 550 in India. For its engineering centres in Noida and Bengaluru, Thales said it is recruiting people on permanent or fixed-term contracts as well as providing several internal mobility opportunities in Thales in India and across the globe. "Through our engineering competence centres and supply chains, we enable our employees in India to work in cross-functional and inter-geographical teams on technologies that drive the sustainable development of our societies," said Ashish Saraf, VP and Country Director for India, Thales. "As we ramp up our recruitment programme for the country, we are excited to welcome new colleagues to Thales in India," Saraf added. At India sites, Thales is mainly seeking hardware engineers, software engineers, systems architects, experts in digital technologies and project managers, offering them the opportunity to help to build a safer, greener, more inclusive world. Thales is also working to improve the gender balance in its workforce. In 2022, women accounted for 25 per cent of new hires in India, and represented 22 per cent of the Group's India workforce. In India, 80 students joined the company as interns this month. Thales expanded its India presence recently by opening its 1st Design Centre, which is an extension of Thales' Engineering Competence Centre in Noida and will be a hub for innovation, research, and development in the country. "Joining Thales is a ticket to some of technology's great human adventures and a chance to be part of a learning organisation that places a premium on collective endeavour," said Patrice Caine, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Thales. /IANS