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India's overall labour force participation rate for people aged 15 years and above declined to 54.6 per cent during April-June 2026 from 55.5 per cent in the previous quarter, according to government data released on Monday.
The Worker Population Ratio, which indicates the proportion of the population that is employed, also fell to 51.7 per cent from 52.8 per cent during January-March 2026, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said in its latest Periodic Labour Force Survey quarterly bulletin. The decline was more pronounced in rural areas, where labour force participation fell to 56.9 per cent from 58.2 per cent in the previous quarter. Rural unemployment rose to 4.8 per cent from 4.3 per cent during the same period. However, rural unemployment remained unchanged from the 4.8 per cent recorded in April-June 2025. The overall labour force participation rate was 0.4 percentage points lower than the year-ago level. Female participation weakened during the quarter, with the overall female labour force participation rate declining to 33.2 per cent from 34.7 per cent. The female Worker Population Ratio also fell to 31.3 per cent from 32.8 per cent. Urban labour-market indicators remained comparatively stable. Urban labour force participation was unchanged at 50.2 per cent, while the urban Worker Population Ratio stood at 46.8 per cent compared with 46.9 per cent in the previous quarter. Urban unemployment remained broadly stable at 6.7 per cent against 6.6 per cent in January-March. Urban female unemployment declined to 8.7 per cent from 9.1 per cent, while labour force participation among urban men increased marginally to 75.3 per cent from 75 per cent. The survey showed an increase in regular wage and salaried employment. Its share in rural employment rose to 16.1 per cent from 15.5 per cent, while the urban share increased to 49.3 per cent from 48.9 per cent. Rural employment also shifted away from agriculture during the quarter. Agriculture's share declined to 52.9 per cent from 55.8 per cent, while the secondary sector's share, including mining and quarrying, increased to 24.4 per cent from 22.6 per cent. The tertiary-sector share rose to 22.7 per cent from 21.7 per cent. The government estimated that an average of 56.6 crore people aged 15 years and above were employed during the quarter, including 40.2 crore men and 16.4 crore women. The quarterly estimates were based on information collected from 5,59,673 people across rural and urban India. (ANI)
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