NEW DELHI: Overall unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and above has dipped marginally to 5.5 per cent in May compared to 5.6 per cent a year ago, as shown by the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the National Statistics Office on Monday.
According to the PLFS for May, 2026, the overall unemployment rate (UR) for persons aged 15 years and above was 5.2 per cent in April this year.
The PLFS conducted by NSO, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, is the primary source of data on activity participation and employment and unemployment conditions of the population. The PLFS survey methodology has been modified from January, 2025 to provide monthly and quarterly estimates of labour force indicators for the country.
Monthly results of PLFS present estimates of key labour market indicators viz. Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), Worker Population Ratio (WPR) and Unemployment Rate (UR) at the all-India level following the Current Weekly Status(CWS) approach.
The Monthly Bulletins for April, 2025 to April, 2026 have already been released. The present Monthly Bulletin for May, 2026 is the fourteenth in the series. According to the statement, in May 2026, the rural UR increased marginally to 5.1 per cent from 4.6 per cent in April, 2026, while the urban UR eased to 6.4 per cent from 6.6 per cent during the same period.
The overall UR was estimated at 5.5 per cent in May, 2026. Compared with May, 2025, the urban UR declined from 6.9 per cent to 6.4 per cent, marking a reduction of 0.5 percentage points in May, 2026, it stated. The overall UR remained stable, while the rural UR maintained the same level of 5.1 per cent over the same period, it stated.
Urban UR recorded its lowest level since May, 2025, it also stated. At the all-India level, the monthly estimates are based on information collected from a total number of 3,73,887 persons surveyed.
The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for persons aged 15 years and above was reported as 54.4 per cent in May, 2026, compared to 55.0 per cent in April, 2026, it stated.
In rural and urban areas, LFPR was recorded at 56.6 per cent and 49.8 per cent, respectively. The year-on-year comparison shows that the overall LFPR in May, 2026 declined by 0.4 percentage points..
Rural and urban LFPR also registered a decline of 0.3 and 0.6 percentage points, respectively, over the same period, it stated. Female Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for age 15 years and above stood at 32.8 per cent in May, 2026.
In rural areas, female LFPR was recorded at 36.7 per cent, whereas it remained almost at the same level at 24.8 per cent in urban areas compared to the previous month.
Compared to May, 2025, the overall female LFPR declined marginally by 0.4 percentage points, from 33.2 per cent to 32.8 per cent in May, 2026. Rural female LFPR remained broadly unchanged, whereas LFPR for urban female recorded a decline of 0.5 percentage points over the year.
The Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for persons aged 15 years and above recorded a marginal decline of 0.3 percentage points in both rural and urban sectors between May, 2025 and May, 2026, it stated.
The overall WPR was estimated at 51.4 per cent in May, 2026, compared to 52.2 per cent in April, 2026 and 51.7 per cent in May, 2025.
In rural areas, WPR stood at 53.8 per cent in May, 2026, compared to 54.9 per cent in April, 2026. WPR in urban areas was estimated at 46.6 per cent in May, 2026 against 46.8 per cent in April, 2026.
It explained that the moderation in LFPR and WPR with an increase in UR indicates a softening of labour market conditions during the period.
Source: Millennium Post
