Unemployment rate rises to 8-month high of 9.2% in June: CMIE data

The unemployment rate rose to an eight-month high of 9.2 per cent in June 2024, up from 7 per cent in the previous month.

It was 8.5 per cent in June 2023, according to data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). The numbers are based on the Consumer Pyramids Household Survey that CMIE conducts periodically.

The unemployment rate measures the number of people who are unemployed and actively looking for a job among those in the labour force.

The female unemployment rate was higher than the national average at 18.5 per cent in June 2024 compared to 15.1 per cent in the same month last year. The male unemployment rate stood at 7.8 per cent compared to 7.7 per cent in the same month last year (chart 1).

 

Rural areas continue to experience higher unemployment rates, with joblessness growing to 9.3 per cent in June 2024 from 6.3 per cent in May 2024 and 8.8 per cent in June 2023. For males in rural areas, the rate rose to 8.2 per cent in June 2024 from 5.4 per cent in May, and for females to 17.1 per cent from 12.0 per cent in the same period.

Urban areas saw a smaller increase, with the rate climbing to 8.9 per cent in June 2024 from 8.6 per cent in May. Women saw a steeper rise in urban areas as well (21.36 per cent in June 2024 compared to 18.53 per cent in May).

The rise in unemployment comes even amid a higher Labour Participation Rate (LPR). The LPR refers to those working or willing to work and actively looking for a job among the total working-age population (15 years and above).

The labour participation rate improved marginally, rising to 41.4 per cent in June 2024 from 40.8 per cent in May. It was 39.9 per cent in June 2023.

Male and female labour participation rates reached 68.1 per cent and 11.3 per cent, respectively, in June (chart 2).