According to an article by Mahesh Vyas on CMIE website, the employment situation continues to remain grim in the country.<\/p>\n
According to CMIE, the unemployment rate continues to remain high compared to the levels a year ago when they ranged closer to 4 per cent although it fell slightly to 5.9 per cent in April 2018 compared to the over 6 per cent rate seen in the preceding two months.<\/p>\n
April began with rising unemployment rates of over 7 per cent, but then the rates moved decidedly lower in the second half of the month.<\/p>\n
Labour participation rate (LPR) declined in April 2018. At 43.1 per cent the LPR in April was among the lowest. In the past 28 months, (since the CMIE started measuring LPR), this was the second-lowest LPR level.<\/p>\n
“The low LPR and high unemployment rate combine to give us a low employment rate in April 2018. The employment rate was 40.7 per cent during the month. This is a small improvement over the 40.5 per cent level of March 2018. But, March and April this year mark the lowest employment rates recorded since January 2016 when we began these measurements,” said Vyas.<\/p>\n
Here are some points he makes:<\/p>\n
– The estimated employed persons in the country was 403.2 million and the unemployed who were actively looking for a job during the month was 25.1 million.<\/p>\n
–\u00a0 An additional 9.5 million were unemployed and willing to work but were not actively looking for a job.<\/p>\n
– The total workforce willing to work and was waiting for jobs to become available therefore was of the order of 35 million.<\/p>\n
– Large numbers of labour force quit the labour markets post demonetisation and have not returned to the labour markets. It is likely that when conditions improve these could come back. If we add these, then the workforce that is willing to work but does not have a job is much larger.<\/p>\n
Vyas describes the current situation, particularly in urban India, as “sombre”.<\/p>\n
Noting that the number of applicants for a single job often runs into several thousands, Vyas says: “Although the overall unemployment rate fell in April, it rose in urban India – from 6.5 per cent in March to 6.6 per cent in April. Labour participation rate fell from 41.1 per cent to 40.8 per cent. And, the employment rate fell to its lowest level of 38.1 per cent.”<\/p>\n
The employment rate had touched a new low of 38.4 per cent in March 2018 itself. However, in April, it fell further to 38.1 per cent.<\/p>\n
The working age Vyas takes into consideration are all persons above the age of 15 years. In September 2016, over 41 per cent of such people were working.<\/p>\n
Employment in urban India fell to an 11-month low in April 2018.<\/p>\n
However, says Vyas, the month\u2019s data also seems to suggest a pause in the growing employment in urban India seen in the preceding six months. This rising employment had stabilised the employment rate at around 40 per cent after seeing a fall in the preceding months.<\/p>\n
At the same time, a RBI report released last week (April 25) talked of a sharp decline in rural wages since 2014. “During the last 10 year period, a high growth phase in rural wages from 2007-08 to 2012-13 was followed by a phase of significant deceleration,” the RBI report said.<\/p>\n
Between October 2007 and October 2013, the report noted, wages in the agricultural and non-agricultural sectors grew at 17% and 15%, respectively. Since November 2014, however, agricultural and non-agricultural sector wages grew at only 5.6% and 6.5%, respectively.<\/p>\n
![\"Employment](\"http:\/\/s3apnlivemumbai.s3-website.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com\/apnlive\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Employment-situation-grim-says-CMIE-Rural-wages-drop-says-RBI-report1.jpg\")
<\/a>Phase I (Jan 2002-Sep 2007)<\/p>\n