(MENAFN- Live Mint) Self-employment has created the majority of jobs (farm and non-farm) in the Indian economy over the past six years, with numbers surging from 23.9 crore in FY18 to 35.8 million in FY24, according to HSBC Bank's Employment Trends in India report.

The annual CAGR is a“healthy” 7%, it added, with self-employment category taking pole position among categories across the Indian labour market, against casual labour and salaried work, ANI reported citing the study.

As per the report, rise in self-employment has been in tandem with surge in the labour force participation rate (LFPR), which has increased from 53% in FY18 to 64.3% in FY24. LFPR is calculated for working individuals aged 15-59 years.

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• Self-employment has jumped from around 23.90 crore in FY18 to near 35.80 million in FY24, according to HSBC Bank's Employment Trends in India report.
• On the other hand, salaried jobs or regular wage jobs have seen marginal increase from 10.5 crore in FY18 to 11.9 crore in FY24 - CAGR of 4.1%
• And casual labour has stagnated with CAGR of 1.1%, up to 12.2 crore in FY24, from 11.4 crore in FY18.
• As per the report, self-employed now accounts for well over half of India's total employed population and is“central” to the country's employment landscape., which it is also reshaping slightly away from farm roles.
• As of FY24, India had a total of 61.4 crore employed individuals, with the non-farm sector accounting for 54% and agriculture 46% of the pie.
• According to the report, despite non-farm jobs seeing an increase, agriculture has continued to add workers - especially female participants.
• In fact, in the farm sector, women dominated with 7.4 crore jobs, compared to marginal increase in male employment by 5 crore.

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As per the report, total employment increased by 15.5 crore in FY24, with a notable share driven by women. While men led in terms of participation share with 58.2%, women's participation has increased in FY24, at 31.7%.

“The increase in employment of 15,5 crore people was driven by higher female workers, with female employment rising by 10.3 crore - nearly double the addition of male workers at 52 million,” the HSBC Bank report stated.

The demographics surge, coupled with increase in self-employment sector suggests that more women and younger job seekers are entering the labour force and turning toward self-employment due to limited availability of wage-based jobs.

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In terms of the non-farm, non-agricultural sectors providing jobs, construction (2 crore job added), manufacturing (1.5 crore), and services (4.1 crore) were the top employers.

Within the services sector, communication-related activities, education, hotels and restaurants, retail and wholesale trade, and transport, were the major employers, with trade alone accounting for 40% of total increase. It also comprised over 20% of total non-farm job creation.

In manufacturing, total employment grew to 7 crores across food and beverages, furniture, metals, textiles, and tobacco, with textile and apparel accounting for nearly 33% of the increase.

MSMEs were also job creators, accounting for 48% of manufacturing employment and 48% of services employment in FY24. Employment due to MSME trade and services has added 1.7 crore jobs in just two years, it added.

(With inputs from ANI)

Key Takeaways

• Self-employment has grown significantly over six years, from 23.9 crore in FY18 to 35.8 crore in FY24, outpacing salaried jobs.
• The rise in self-employment is linked to a surge in labour force participation, increasing from 53% to 64.3%.
• Female participation in the workforce has notably increased, with women accounting for a significant share of new jobs.

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