India’s unemployment rate among individuals aged 15 years and above has seen a slight decline, dropping from 5.0% in 2023 to 4.9% in 2024, according to the latest Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
This marginal improvement reflects subtle shifts in employment opportunities across rural and urban areas, as well as gender-specific trends.
Unemployment Rate: Rural vs Urban Trends and Gender-Specific Dynamics
The overall decline in unemployment was primarily driven by improvements in rural areas, where the unemployment rate eased from 4.3% to 4.2%.
Both rural men and women experienced slight reductions in unemployment, contributing to this positive trend.
However, urban unemployment remained stable at 6.7%, with contrasting dynamics between genders.
Male unemployment in urban areas rose marginally from 6.0% to 6.1%, while female unemployment saw a notable decline from 8.9% to 8.2%.
The decline in rural female participation was attributed to a decrease in the percentage of unpaid helpers in household enterprises, which fell from 19.9% in 2023 to 18.1% in 2024.
This shift indicates fewer women engaging in traditional informal roles within family-run businesses.
Meanwhile, the drop in urban female unemployment highlights progress in gender-specific employment opportunities, although challenges persist in achieving equitable workforce representation.
Labour Force Participation and Workforce Ratios
The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), which measures the proportion of the population either employed or actively seeking employment, remained largely stable at 56.2% at the national level.
However, under the Principal and Subsidiary Status (PS+SS) approach, LFPR showed a slight dip from 59.8% in 2023 to 59.6% in 2024.
Urban areas witnessed an increase in LFPR, with male participation rising from 74.3% to 75.6% and female participation inching up from 25.5% to 25.8%.
This led to an overall rise in urban LFPR from 50.3% to 51.0%.
The Worker Population Ratio (WPR), which represents the share of the working population, also displayed mixed trends.
At the all-India level, WPR remained relatively unchanged, moving from 53.4% to 53.5%.
Urban areas saw slight improvements in WPR, rising from 47.0% to 47.6%, while rural female participation experienced a decline due to a reduction in unpaid helpers in household enterprises.
Note: We are also on WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Google News, and YouTube. To get the latest news updates, subscribe to our channels. WhatsApp: Click Here, Google News: Click Here, YouTube: Click Here, and LinkedIn: Click Here.
