RSS Leadership Criticizes Growth in Unemployment
By Riaz Haq
CA
Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha, the top decision-making body of India's RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh), says that “the young generation is suffering from unemployment and the pandemic has made things even grim... We cannot turn a blind eye to unemployment. It is a crisis, and it needs to be addressed.” The RSS was apparently reacting to India's falling labor participation rate in India relative to Pakistan and the global averages.
|
Falling Employment in India - Source CMIE |
India's labor participation rate (LPR) fell to 39.5% in March 2022, according to the Center for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). It dropped below the 39.9% participation rate recorded in February. It is also lower than that witnessed during the second wave of Covid-19 in April-June 2021.
The lowest the labor participation rate had fallen to in the second wave was in June 2021 when it dropped to 39.6%. The average LPR during April-June 2021 was 40%. March 2022, with no Covid-19 wave and with much lesser restrictions on mobility, has reported a worse LPR of 39.5%.
|
Labor Participation Rates in India and Pakistan – Source ILO/World Bank |
In spite of the headline GDP growth figures highlighted by the Indian and world media, the fact is that it has been jobless growth. The labor participation rate (LPR) in India has been falling for more than a decade. The LPR in India has been below Pakistan's for several years, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO).
|
Indian Employment Trends by Sector - Source CMIE via Business Standard |
Construction and manufacturing sectors in India have been shedding jobs while the number of people working in agriculture has been rising, according to CMIE.
|
Pakistan Employment by Sectors - Source PBS via Bilal Gilani |
It is important to note that Pakistan’s economy has created 5.5 million jobs during the past three years – 1.84 million jobs a year, significantly higher than the yearly average of new jobs created during the 2008-18 decade, according to the findings of Labor Force Survey (LFS) as reported by the Express Tribune paper . The biggest jump in share of employment (1.5%) was in the construction sector, spurred by Naya Pakistan construction incentives offered by the PTI government.
(Riaz Haq is a Silicon Valley-based Pakistani-American analyst and writer. He blogs at www.riazhaq.com )
