India Employment Report 2024 – by ILO: 27 Mar 2024

Recent trends

• Youth unemployment: Around  83% of the unemployed workforce in India comprises young people.
• Education and unemployment: The percentage of unemployed youth with secondary or higher education has nearly doubled from 35.2% in 2000 to 65.7% in 2022.
• Employment trends: The report states that youth employment and underemployment increased between 2000 and 2019. 
• Impact on educated youth: Educated youth have faced higher levels of unemployment during the same period.
• Long-term deterioration: The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), Worker Population Ratio (WPR), and Unemployment Rate (UR) showed a decline from 2000 to 2018.

Agriculture  and unorganised labour 

• Absorption of agricultural labor: The construction and services sectors have been the main absorbers of labor from agriculture.
• Dominance of informal work: Approximately 90% of workers in India remain engaged in informal work, which lacks formal protections and benefits.
• Decline in regular work: The share of regular work, which had been steadily increasing since 2000, declined after 2018.

Non-farm sectors

• Insufficient growth in non-farm sectors: The primary long-term issue in India’s employment situation is the inadequate growth of non-farm sectors and their ability to absorb workers from agriculture.
• Non-farm employment growth: Non-farm employment has grown at a higher rate than farm employment in different periods before 2018.

Skill deficit in youth 

• Skills gap among the youth: Despite India’s large young workforce being seen as a demographic dividend, the report notes that many lack essential skills. For example, 75% of youth are unable to send emails with attachments.