Youth hirings in formal sector witness upswing in April-May: EPFO data

EPFO data says women subscribers also rose after falling last year

Fresh youth employment in the formal sector of the economy gathered momentum in April-May, with the number of subscribers under the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) in the 18-28 age group increasing by 3.3 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in FY25 to 1.27 million.

Earlier, the number of young EPF subscribers in the same age bracket had contracted by nearly 10 per cent (Y-o-Y) to 1.23 million during these two months of FY24.

Tracking first-time job seekers in India is crucial as around 8 million youths enter the labour market annually and high youth unemployment signals challenges in the job market.

According to the EPFO data, the number of fresh women subscribers grew 4.1 per cent Y-o-Y to 507,000 in April-May FY25.

 

Earlier, the number of women EPF subscribers had contracted by 11 per cent to 487,900 during April-May in FY24.

“This is in consonance with the earlier trend that indicates that most individuals joining the organised workforce are youths, primarily first-time job seekers. The surge in female member additions is [also] indicative of a broader shift towards a more inclusive and diverse workforce,” the labour ministry has said in a statement on Saturday.

Suchita Dutta, executive director, Indian Staffing Federation (ISF), said the “expert services”, which consist primarily of employment in the staffing industry, had consistently been driving this new employment growth involving young and women employees. 

“Among various factors responsible for this increased youth and women employment is increased investment in skill development programmes targeting youth and women matching demands in respective sectors, along with an expansion of digital literacy initiatives to enhance employability. Moreover, a focus on creating a supportive work environment for women to improve their participation in the workforce is also bearing results,” she added.

Rituparna Chakraborty, co-founder, Teamlease Services, said usually during the first quarter of any financial year, firms prepared a comprehensive view of their workforce requirements and kickstart hiring. 

“This year overall hiring has seen a slight improvement as compared to the dip seen during last financial year. Whenever opportunities increase, it is invariably the young and women who benefit from them and this is what is happening this time. It is high time the hiring momentum generated in the first quarter continued in the short-medium term as the long festival season is going to begin, generating more new jobs and opportunities for the young and women,” she added.

The monthly payroll data released by the social-security organisation has shown the number of fresh formal jobs created in May increased to a 10-month high, signalling a recovery in the formal labour market in the country. Subscribers numbering 1.91 million joined the EPF in April-May this financial year, as compared to 1.89 million in the corresponding period in FY24.

Previously, 2.12 million subscribers had joined the EPFO during these two months in FY23. 

The monthly payroll data is part of the government’s effort to track formal-sector employment by using payroll as an instrument. From April 2018, the EPFO has been releasing payroll data covering the period from September 2017 onwards. Along with it, the National Statistical Office (NSO) has also been bringing out employment-related statistics in the formal sector, using information on the number of subscribers under the Employees’ State Insurance Scheme and the National Pension System.