Female Joblessness Higher As India's Unemployment Rate Rises To 5.6% In May Amid Seasonal Slowdown, Rural Distress

India's unemployment rate increased to 5.6% in May 2025, up from 5.1% in April, due to seasonal shifts in rural employment, reduced agricultural activity, and extreme heat limiting outdoor work. This was revealed in the Monthly Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on Monday.

Youth, women, and rural workers worst affected

The unemployment rate among people aged 15-29 years jumped to 15% in May from 13.8% in April. Young women in this age group faced even sharper joblessness at 16.3%, up from 14.4% the previous month. For young men, the rate rose to 14.5% from 13.6%.

At the national level, female unemployment stood at 5.8%, slightly higher than the 5.6% rate for males.

Rural areas see sharper rise in unemployment

In urban India, the jobless rate edged up to 17.9% in May from 17.2% in April. However, rural India saw a more notable jump from 12.3% in April to 13.7% in May. Among rural youth, unemployment rose from 10.7% to 13%, while in urban areas, it rose from 23.7% to 24.7%.

The end of the rabi harvest season and movement of unpaid women helpers to domestic work in wealthier rural homes contributed to the rural slowdown.

Labour force participation rate also declines

The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), the share of working-age people actively working or seeking work, fell from 55.6% in April to 54.8% in May 2025.

• In rural areas, LFPR declined from 58% to 56.9%
• In urban areas, from 50.7% to 50.4%

Among women, rural LFPR dropped from 38.2% to 36.9%, and urban LFPR from 25.7% to 25.3%

The fall was sharper among rural women, due to fewer working as casual labourers or unpaid helpers.

Worker-Population Ratio (WPR) also dips

The Worker-Population Ratio (WPR), which measures the percentage of people employed out of the total population, fell nationwide from 52.8% in April to 51.7% in May 2025.

• In rural areas, WPR declined from 55.4% to 54.1%
• In urban areas, from 47.4% to 46.9%

Among rural women, WPR dropped from 36.8% to 35.2%, and for urban women, from 23.5% to 23%

The overall WPR for women aged 15+ in the country dropped from 32.5% to 31.3%.

Survey details and methodology changes

This latest data comes from a restructured PLFS that began in January 2025 to provide monthly, high-frequency labour indicators. In May 2025, the survey covered:

• 7,511 sampling units
• 89,372 households (49,267 rural; 40,105 urban)
• 3,79,600 people (2,16,542 rural; 1,63,058 urban)

Officials clarified that these monthly figures may fluctuate due to short-term seasonal, academic, or climate-related effects, and do not necessarily indicate a long-term trend.

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