Uttarakhand Leads in Employment Growth

• 03 Oct 2024

Why in News?

The Uttarakhand government claims significant progress in reducing unemployment, as highlighted in the latest Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), 2023-24 report.

Key Points

• Unemployment Rate Decline:
  • Overall unemployment decreased from 4.5% to 4.3%.
  • Most notable reduction in the 15-29 age group, dropping from 14.2% to 9.8%.
• Improvement in Worker Population Ratio:
  • Increased worker population ratio across all age groups in 2023-24 compared to 2022-23.
  • For ages 15-29: Increased from 27.5% to 44.2%.
  • For ages 15-59: Increased from 57.2% to 61.2%.
  • For ages 15 and above: Increased from 53.5% to 58.1%.
• Youth Labor Force Participation:
  • Increased participation in the labor force for youth (15-29 years) from 43.7% to 49%.
  • Labor force participation for ages 15-59 rose from 60.1% to 64.4%.
  • Ages 15 and above saw an increase from 56% to 60.7%.
• Surpassing National Averages:
  • Uttarakhand's labor population average for ages 15-29 is 49%, compared to the national average of 46.5%.
  • For ages 15-59, the state stands at 64.4% (national average: 64.3%).
  • For ages 15 and above, Uttarakhand is at 60.7% (national average: 60.1%).

Periodic Labour Force Survey Report

• About: It is conducted by the NSO under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) to measure the employment and unemployment situation in India.
  • It was developed to address the limitations of earlier labour force surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO).
• Two Primary Objectives of PLFS: It was designed with two major objectives for measuring employment and unemployment:
  • First Objective: To measure the dynamics of labour force participation and employment status at short intervals (every three months) for urban areas using the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach.
  • Second Objective: To measure labour force estimates for both rural and urban areas using the Usual Status and CWS parameters.
• Innovations in Sampling Design and Data Collection: The PLFS introduced changes in the sampling design and the structure of the schedule of inquiry compared to the previous quinquennial surveys conducted by the NSSO.
  • The PLFS also included additional data, such as the number of hours worked, which was not collected in the earlier quinquennial rounds of the NSSO.