Parliament Question: Employment Generation and Participation of Women in Workforce

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO.*112 TO BE ANSWERED ON 27TH JULY, 2026 EMPLOYMENT GENERATION AND PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN WORKFORCE *112. DR. SHIV PAL SINGH PATEL:

Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to state:

(a) whether any concrete and time-bound action plan has been formulated by the Government to create quality and sustainable employment opportunities for the youth and to promote investment in employment-generating sectors in view of the rising unemployment in the country and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether any steps are being taken by the Government to ensure safety of workers across the industrial establishments, reduce workplace accidents and effective compliance of safety standards and if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether any effective steps are being taken by the Government for the prevention of child labour, rehabilitation of the affected children and to bring children into the mainstream of education and if so, the details thereof; and

(d) whether any concrete steps are being taken by the Government to enhance women's participation in workforce and effective enforcement of policies regarding workplace safety, pay equity and maternity benefits and if so, the details thereof? ANSWER MINISTER OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (DR. MANSUKH MANDAVIYA)

(a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House. *STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *112 DUE FOR REPLY ON 27.07.2026 BY DR. SHIV PAL SINGH PATEL, M.P. REGARDING “EMPLOYMENT GENERATION AND PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN WORKFORCE”

(a) to (d): Official estimates of employment and unemployment in India are derived from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation since 2017–18.

The PLFS methodology was revamped with effect from January 2025. The PLFS Annual Report 2025 is the first report in the revised series to present labour market estimates, covering the period from January to December 2025.

As per latest PLFS report 2025, the estimated Worker Population Ratio (WPR) indicating employment on usual status for persons of age 15 years and above has increased from 54.1% in 2022 to 57.4% in 2025 and the estimated Unemployment Rate (UR) on usual status for persons of age 15 years and above has decreased from 3.6% in 2022 to 3.1% in 2025.

Also, the UR for youth of age 15-29 years has decreased from 10.9% in 2022 to 9.9% in 2025.

The Government has launched Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes for 14 key sectors with an approved financial outlay of ₹1.91 lakh crore to enhance India's manufacturing capabilities, attract investments, increase exports, generate employment and improve India's global competitiveness. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) acts as the nodal Department for overall coordination and monitoring of the PLI Schemes, while the respective Administrative Ministries/Departments are responsible for implementation of their respective Schemes. As on 31.03.2026, under the PLI Schemes, resulted actual investment of over ₹2.40 lakh crore and employment generation of over 14.15 lakh (direct and indirect).

Employment generation coupled with improving employability is the priority of the Government. Government is implementing various schemes to boost the female Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) as well as the overall LFPR for youth like Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana

(PMMY), Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Stand-UP India Scheme, Startup India, Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Women in Science and Engineering- KIRAN (WISE- KIRAN), SERB-POWER (Promoting Opportunities for Women in Exploratory Research), Mission Shakti, Namo Drone Didi and Lakhpati Didi, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme(MGNREGS), Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY), Rural Self Employment and Training Institutes (RSETIs), Deen Dayal Antodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY- NULM), Production Linked Incentive, etc. The details of various employment generation schemes/ programmes being implemented by the Government of India may be seen at

https://dge.gov.in/dge/schemes_programmes.

Government has also launched “NAVYA’ (Nurturing Aspirations through Vocational Training for Young Adolescent Girls) with an aim to equip adolescent girls aged 16 to 18 years with vocational training mainly in non traditional and emerging job roles.

The Rozgar Mela is a major initiative aimed at prioritising employment generation. Since its inception, more than 12.5 lakh recruitment letters have been issued through 19 Rozgar Melas organised across the country.

Additionally, Government is also implementing Skill India Mission

(SIM) to deliver skill, re-skill and up-skill training through an extensive network of skill development centres/ schools/ colleges /institutes etc. under various schemes, viz. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana

(PMKVY), Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS), National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) and Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS) through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the country. The SIM aims at enabling youth of India to get future ready, equipped with industry relevant skills.

In addition, to enhance the employability of female workers, the Government is providing training to them through a network of Women Industrial Training Institutes, National Vocational Training Institutes and Regional Vocational Training Institutes.

The Ministry of MSME launched Udyam Registration Portal on

01.07.2020 for formalizing enterprises, expanding access to government support and strengthening the MSME ecosystem. A total of 8.9 crore Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have been registered on Udyam Registration Portal, including Udyam Assist Platform (UAP) (of which 3.4 crore are women-led enterprises) providing employment to over 39 crore people across the country.Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has initiated ‘FutureSkills PRIME’ a programme for Re-skilling/Up-skilling of IT Manpower for Employability in 10 new/emerging technologies including Artificial Intelligence.

Also, the Government is implementing Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) Scheme named as the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana to support employment generation, enhance employability and social security across all sectors, with special focus on the manufacturing sector. The scheme with an outlay of Rs 99,446 Crore aims to incentivize the creation of more than 3.5 Crore jobs in the country, over a period of 2 years. The PMVBRY is a demand-driven scheme. Under part A, incentive amount of Rs 744.7 crore has disbursed to 13.18 lakh first timer employees; and under Part B, incentive amount of Rs 2068.84 cr has been disbursed to 83,535 beneficiary establishments.

Further, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India, is running the National Career Service (NCS) Portal which is a one-stop solution for providing career related services including jobs from private and government sectors, information on online & offline job fairs, job search & matching, career counselling, vocational guidance, information on skill development courses, skill/training programmes etc. through a digital platform [www.ncs.gov.in].

The four Labour Codes – the Code on Wages, 2019, the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, the Code on Social Security, 2020 and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 have been implemented with effect from 21st November 2025, rationalizing 29 erstwhile labour laws.

The Government has enacted Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH&WC) Code 2020 to regulate safety, health and working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment including factory and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. The OSH & WC Code 2020 has come into force from

21.11.2025. The Central Government has also notified OSH & WC

(Central) Rules 2026 on 08.05.2026. There are elaborate provisions pertaining to occupational safety, health, welfare, hazardous processes, penalties and procedures etc. under the OSH & WC Code 2020 and rules framed thereunder. Further, as per the OSH & WC Code, the employer is to, inter-alia, ensure that:i. the work place free from hazards which cause or likely to cause injury or occupational disease to the employees.

ii. the provision and maintenance of plant and systems of work in the workplace that are safe and without risk to health. iii. The maintenance of all places of work in the workplace in a condition that is safe and without risk to health and the provision and maintenance of such means of access to, and egress from such places as are safe and without such risk;

Further, these labour codes have various provisions to promote female

labour force participation such as :-

(i) Proportionate representation of women in Grievance Redressal Committee to ensure their voices are included in workplace dispute resolutions.

(ii) Up to 26 weeks of paid maternity leave, along with 12 weeks for adoptive and commissioning mothers and allowing remote work after maternity leave where feasible.

(iii) Prohibition of gender-based discrimination in matters of wages and conditions of employment for the same or similar work.

(iv) Promoting creche facilities for children below the age of six to help working mothers balance work and family life.

Further, the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 permits women to be employed in all establishments and in all types of work. Women may also be employed, with their consent, before 6:00 a.m. and beyond 7:00 p.m., subject to prescribed conditions relating to safety, working hours, holidays and other safeguards. The Code further provides that establishments must put in place adequate safeguards before engaging women in any hazardous or dangerous process.

With a view to ensure safety of women at workplace, the Ministry of Women and Child Development has put in place an electronic platform “SHe-Box portal” duly encompassing various provisions of ‘the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013’ (SH Act).

Government has also adopted a multi-pronged approach on a life- cycle continuum basis to address the issue of educational, social, economic and political empowerment of women. As a result, India is witnessing a rapid transition from women’s-development to women led development with the vision of a new India where women are leading the way for fast paced and sustainable national development.The Government has also made enabling provisions in the Companies Act, 2013, mandating companies to have at least one-woman Director.

The Union Budget (2024-25) announced setting up of working women hostels in collaboration with industry, and establishing creches, for increasing participation of women in the workforce.

The steps taken by the Government for prevention of child labour include:

(i) Enactment of the Child and Adolescent labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986. The Act inter-alia covers complete prohibition of work or employment of children below 14 years of age in any occupation or process and prohibition of adolescent in the age group of 14 to 18 years in hazardous occupations and processes. The Act provides for strict punishment of employers for violation of its provisions and makes the offences under the Act cognizable.

(ii) Framing of the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Rules, 1988. The Rules inter-alia, provide for District Nodal Officer (DNO) and Task Force at district level under chairpersonship of District Magistrate to ensure that the provisions of the Act are properly enforced.

(iii) Framing of model State Action Plan enumerating action points to be taken by respective State Governments.

The Ministry of Labour & Employment was implementing National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme for rescue & rehabilitation of child labourers under which the children in the age group of 9-14 years were rescued from work, enrolled in the NCLP Special Training Centres (STCs) and were provided with bridge education, etc. before being mainstreamed into formal education system. The scheme was subsumed with Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), a scheme of the Ministry of Education with effect from 01.04.2021.

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