The recent Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for 2017-18 observed and highlighted significant fluctuations across states in the unemployment rate in India. According to the survey, the country’s overall unemployment rate stands at 6.1%. However, there is a wide disparity among different states, with Nagaland having the highest unemployment rate of 21.4% and Meghalaya having the lowest rate of 1.5%.
Unemployment Statistics Across Urban and Rural India
Upon dissecting the data on urban and rural division, the occurrence of unemployment is higher in urban areas at 7.8% than in rural regions at 5.3%. The survey also delved into gender-specific figures, reporting that in rural settings, males experienced a higher rate of unemployment – 5.8%, in contrast to females who had a lower rate of 3.8%. Interestingly, a contrary pattern was noted in urban areas, where unemployment among females was higher at 10.8% compared to males at 7.1%.
The Inequality in Unemployment Rates
Overall, Indian women aren’t unemployed as much as men, registering rates of 5.7% and 6.2%, respectively. Nonetheless, individual state-wise analysis reveals some alarming figures. Goa and Kerala recorded high female unemployment rates of 26% and 23.3%, respectively. In contrast, Meghalaya registered the lowest female unemployment rate at just 1.9%.
| State | Unemployment Rate (%) |
|---|---|
| Goa | 26 |
| Kerala | 23.3 |
| Meghalaya | 1.9 |
Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Explained
The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) was instituted by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) in 2017. The main objective of PLFS is to gauge the labour force participation and employment status dynamics over a short period of three months for urban areas only, using the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach. Moreover, annually, the survey will produce level estimates pertaining to all significant parameters in both CWS and usual status for both rural and urban areas.
Key Employment and Unemployment Indicators
There are several indicators that PLFS utilises to measure employment and unemployment levels. Some of these include:
1. Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): Defined as the ratio of individuals either working or actively seeking work to the total population.
2. Worker Population Ratio (WPR): It is a measure of the proportion of employed individuals in the total population.
3. Proportion Unemployed (PU): This is the percentage of unemployed individuals in the total population.
4. Unemployment Rate (UR): It is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by the total number of the labour force, which includes both employed and unemployed individuals.