Parliament Question: Status of Employment

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1270 TO BE ANSWERED ON 27TH JULY, 2026 STATUS OF EMPLOYMENT 1270. SHRI VIJAYAKUMAR ALIAS VIJAY VASANTH: Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government is aware that unemployment remains high despite claims of job creation and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; (b) the details of the steps taken by the Government to generate sustainable employment; (c) whether the Government has any data on total new jobs created in Government and Private sectors during the last three years and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; (d) whether large number of vacancies in Government departments remain unfilled and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor along with the timeline to fill such vacancies; (e) whether the Government has assessed quality of jobs created, particularly contractual and gig employment and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor along with the safeguards for job security; and (f) whether any study has been conducted by the Government on youth unemployment trends in the country and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor along with the corrective measures initiated? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SUSHRI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE) (a) to (f): 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 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 in the country. Also, the estimated UR for youth of age 15-29 years has decreased from 10.9% in 2022 to 9.9% in 2025 in the country. Further, 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 in the country. The KLEMS (K: Capital, L: Labour, E: Energy, M: Materials and S: Services) database published by Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) covers 27 industries comprising of the entire Indian economy and provides employment estimates across 27 industries. As per the latest data, total estimated employment in the country has increased to 64.33 crores (Provisional) during 2023-24 as compared to 47.15 crores during 2014-15, which indicates a growth of 36.44% during the period. Further, more than 8.23 crore net subscribers have joined Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) between September 2017 and July 2025 indicating increase in employment and formalization of the job market. Also, more than 1.29 crore net subscribers have joined EPFO during the year 2024-25. Occurrence and filling up of vacant posts in various Ministries/Departments, is a continuous process. Ministries/ Departments of the Central Government have been directed, from time to time, to fill up vacant posts in a time bound manner. The details of vacancies and recruitments are maintained by the respective Ministry/ Department/PSU etc. under Central Government. Vacant posts are being filled up in mission mode by various Ministries/ Departments, their attached organisations and CPSUs etc. Employment generation coupled with improving employability is a priority of the Government. Accordingly, Government is implementing various employment generation schemes/ programmes in the country. The details of various employment generation schemes/ programmes being implemented by the Government may be seen at https://dge.gov.in/dge/schemes_programmes. 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.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. 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), 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. Additionally, 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].For the first time, the definition of ‘gig workers’ and ‘platform workers’ and provisions related to the same have been made in the Code on Social Security, 2020 which has come into force w.e.f. 21.11.2025. The Code provides for framing of suitable social security measures for gig workers and platform workers on matters relating to life and disability cover, accident insurance, health and maternity benefits, old age protection, etc. The Code provides for setting up a Social Security Fund to finance the welfare schemes. The Code also has provisions to constitute a National Social Security Board for the purposes of the welfare of gig workers and platform workers. *****