Jobs and businesses
Employment and unemployment
Employment and unemployment: 5% in August 2026
5%
Data through
Terms in this reading
- PLFS
- The Periodic Labour Force Survey, MoSPI’s survey of employment, unemployment and participation in work. Monthly, quarterly and annual releases have separately labelled periods. Definition and conventions
Notes
The table retains the source’s published periods. Missing observations are not zero and have not been interpolated.
Current Weekly Status for people aged 15 years and above. The monthly series begins with the redesigned methodology in 2025.
Publication cadence: Monthly. Missing observations are not zero.
Employment and unemployment · Unemployment
Employment and unemployment · Unemployment: 13 observations shown, from 2025-08 through 2026-08.
| Period | Percent |
|---|---|
| 2025-08 | 5.1% |
| 2025-09 | 5.2% |
| 2025-10 | 5.2% |
| 2025-11 | 4.7% |
| 2025-12 | 4.8% |
| 2026-01 | 5.0% |
| 2026-02 | 4.9% |
| 2026-03 | 5.1% |
| 2026-04 | 5.2% |
| 2026-05 | 5.5% |
| 2026-06 | 5.5% |
| 2026-07 | 5.1% |
| 2026-08 | 5.0% |
data.indiadispatch.com
Rural labour market
| Period | Labour-force participation | Worker-population ratio | Unemployment |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | 58.2% | 55.8% | 4.1% |
| July 2026 | 58% | 55.4% | 4.5% |
| June 2026 | 56.6% | 53.8% | 5% |
| May 2026 | 56.6% | 53.8% | 5.1% |
| April 2026 | 57.5% | 54.9% | 4.6% |
| March 2026 | 58% | 55.5% | 4.3% |
| February 2026 | 58.7% | 56.3% | 4.2% |
| January 2026 | 58.7% | 56.2% | 4.2% |
| December 2025 | 59% | 56.7% | 3.9% |
| November 2025 | 58.6% | 56.3% | 3.9% |
| October 2025 | 57.8% | 55.2% | 4.4% |
| September 2025 | 57.4% | 54.8% | 4.6% |
| August 2025 | 57% | 54.5% | 4.3% |
data.indiadispatch.com
Urban labour market
| Period | Labour-force participation | Worker-population ratio | Unemployment |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | 50.4% | 47% | 6.8% |
| July 2026 | 50.4% | 47% | 6.7% |
| June 2026 | 50.1% | 46.8% | 6.6% |
| May 2026 | 49.8% | 46.6% | 6.4% |
| April 2026 | 50.1% | 46.8% | 6.6% |
| March 2026 | 50.3% | 46.8% | 6.8% |
| February 2026 | 50.4% | 47% | 6.6% |
| January 2026 | 50.3% | 46.8% | 7% |
| December 2025 | 50.2% | 46.8% | 6.7% |
| November 2025 | 50.4% | 47.1% | 6.5% |
| October 2025 | 50.5% | 47% | 7% |
| September 2025 | 50.9% | 47.4% | 6.8% |
| August 2025 | 50.9% | 47.5% | 6.7% |
data.indiadispatch.com
Overall labour market
| Period | Labour-force participation | Worker-population ratio | Unemployment |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | 55.6% | 52.8% | 5% |
| July 2026 | 55.4% | 52.5% | 5.1% |
| June 2026 | 54.4% | 51.4% | 5.5% |
| May 2026 | 54.4% | 51.4% | 5.5% |
| April 2026 | 55% | 52.2% | 5.2% |
| March 2026 | 55.4% | 52.6% | 5.1% |
| February 2026 | 55.9% | 53.2% | 4.9% |
| January 2026 | 55.9% | 53.1% | 5% |
| December 2025 | 56.1% | 53.4% | 4.8% |
| November 2025 | 55.8% | 53.2% | 4.7% |
| October 2025 | 55.4% | 52.5% | 5.2% |
| September 2025 | 55.3% | 52.4% | 5.2% |
| August 2025 | 55% | 52.2% | 5.1% |
data.indiadispatch.com
Source: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, India Dispatch Research
Cite this reading
India by the numbers, Employment and unemployment, August 2026. 5%. Source: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. https://data.indiadispatch.com/economy/labour-force
Published content updated . This is separate from the source observation period.