India’s unemployment rate for people aged 15 and above stayed unchanged at 5.2% in October, holding the same level as September, according to the latest Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). But beneath this overall stability lies a clear split: rural India saw a meaningful improvement in livelihoods, while urban centres showed signs of strain.
The monthly PLFS—based on the Current Weekly Status (CWS), which tracks whether a person worked or sought work during the previous seven days—offers a closer look at how uneven the jobs landscape remains.
Two Different Realities: Rural Momentum, Urban Pressure
The most encouraging movement came from the countryside. Rural unemployment slipped from 4.6% in September to 4.4% in October. This drop coincides with the peak kharif harvest, when crops like rice, maize, and cotton create a surge in farm-related activity. During this period, demand for hands on the field goes up sharply, absorbing workers who would otherwise look for non-farm jobs.
Urban areas, however, told a different story. Joblessness in cities edged up from 6.8% to 7.0%. The increase, though small, reflects the persistent difficulty of creating steady, quality jobs in urban India. Slower momentum in parts of the services sector, along with migration pressure, may be weighing on the ability of cities to absorb new entrants into the workforce.
Gender Gaps: Women Gain, Men Hold Ground
The survey also highlights how men and women are experiencing the job market differently.
- Women Saw Slight Relief: Female unemployment declined from 5.5% in September to 5.4% in October. The improvement was largely powered by rural India, where female joblessness dropped more sharply—from 4.3% to 4.0%. This suggests that agriculture and rural allied sectors are playing a crucial role in pulling more women into work.
- Men Remained Stable: Male unemployment stayed at 5.1%. Rural male unemployment eased marginally, slipping from 4.7% to 4.6%. But that gain was offset by a small uptick in urban male joblessness, which rose from 6.0% to 6.1%.
Labour Force Participation Continues to Rise
Beyond unemployment, one trend stands out: more people are entering the labour market.
The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR)—the share of people working or looking for work—rose again, touching a six-month high of 55.4% in October, compared to 55.3% a month earlier.
Most of this rise came from rural India, where both the LFPR and the Worker Population Ratio (WPR)—a measure of how many people are actually employed—continued their steady climb. The WPR ticked up to 52.5% in October.
Women, in particular, drove this momentum. The female LFPR increased to 34.2%, marking the fourth month in a row of improvement, with rural women leading the way.
Final Take
A stable headline unemployment rate offers some comfort, but it hides an underlying dependence on seasonal rural demand. Rural gains—while welcome—are temporary and heavily tied to agricultural cycles. At the same time, the rise in urban unemployment is a reminder that city-based job creation continues to lag behind the needs of a growing workforce.
For workers and job seekers, the message is clear: navigating the job market increasingly requires upskilling and aligning with the kinds of roles expanding in urban and semi-urban economies. For policymakers, the priority will be sustaining job creation beyond agriculture—particularly in manufacturing and services—so the labour market can hold steady even when the farm season eases.
