Unemployment rate dips to 3.1% in 2023, lowest in the last three years

New Delhi: Unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years or above declined to 3.1 per cent in 2023, the lowest in the last three years, as per a report of the National Sample Survey Organisation under the statistics ministry.

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for calendar year 2023, the unemployment rate came down to 3.1 per cent in 2023 from 3.6 per cent in 2022 and 4.2 per cent in 2021.

Joblessness, or unemployment rate, is defined as the percentage of unemployed people in the labour force.

As per the data, employment situation is improving after the pandemic hit the country in March 2020, which forced authorities to impose lockdown to curb the spread of deadly coronavirus.

The data also showed the improvement in buoyancy in economic activities after lifting of lockdown by the Centre and states.

The survey showed that unemployment rate among females also declined to 3 per cent in 2023 from 3.3 per cent in 2022 and 3.4 per cent in 2021.

Similarly for males, it came down to 3.2 per cent in 2023 from 3.7 per cent in 2022 and 4.5 per cent in 2021.

The overall rate of unemployment also declined in urban areas to 5.2 per cent in 2023 from 5.7 per cent in 2022 and 6.5 per cent 2021.

Similarly, in rural areas it came down to 2.4 per cent in 2023 from 2.8 per cent in 2022 and 3.3 per cent in 2021.

Labour force participation rate (LFPR) in Current Weekly Status (CWS) in urban areas for people aged 15 years and above increased to 56.2 per cent in 2023 from 52.8 per cent in 2022 and 51.8 per cent in 2021.

Labour force refers to the part of the population which supplies or offers to supply labour for pursuing economic activities for the production of goods and services and, therefore, includes both employed and unemployed persons. The NSSO launched PLFS in April 2017.

The estimates of unemployed persons in CWS give an average picture of unemployment in a short span of seven days during the survey period.

In the CWS approach, a person is considered unemployed if he/she did not work even for one hour on any day during the week but sought or was available for work at least for one hour on any day during the period.

Labour force, according to CWS, is the number of persons either employed or unemployed on an average in a week preceding the date of the survey. LFPR is defined as the percentage of the population in the labour force.

Worker Population Ratio (WPR) is defined as the percentage of employed persons in the population.

The WPR also increased to 53.4 per cent in 2023 from 49.8 per cent in 2022 and 48 per cent in 2021.