India’s unemployment rate falls to 5.2%: Salaried jobs expand in cities, farm jobs in villages

As India became the fourth latest economy surpassing Japan, the employment opportunities have increased, reducing the unemployment rate to 5.2 per cent in July-September from 5.4 per cent in the previous quarter. According to the government data, released on Monday the share of employment and salaried jobs have increased in the urban areas.  

The number of salaried jobs have increased in urban areas for both men and women, according to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s (MoSPI) Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) report, the second quarter of 2025-26, salaried jobs made up 25.4 per cent of those employed in July-September, slightly down from 25.5 per cent in April-June.  

Salaried jobs better than self-employment

Salaried employment opportunities are considered much better than labour intensive work and self-employment. As when we look at the security benefits and insurances along with the regular source of income it provides.  

It is considered reputed and an accessible source, which matters more in the establishment of an individual and builds self-confidence. For males, in urban areas salaried employment has increased to 50 basis points (bps) to 48 per cent in July-September. It also increased for females from 40bps to 55.5 per cent.  

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Rural areas see less growth 

In rural areas, according to the data collected, the share of salaried jobs decline; they mainly focus on self-employment and labour intensive jobs. In July-September, salaried jobs accounted for 15 per cent of rural employment, down from 15.4 per cent in April-June, MoSPI data showed.    

Jobs data is usually collected and based on the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach. Under this approach, the activity status of a person is measured for the seven days preceding the date of survey.  

Farms jobs dominate in villages 

While salaried jobs are dominated in the urban settings, it is agriculture that is the biggest contributor in the villages. The rural areas see the share of agriculture jobs rising even further.  

The statistics ministry said in a statement, “The increase in the share of rural employment in the agriculture sector from 53.5 per cent to 57.7 per cent during July–September 2025 can be attributed to Kharif agricultural operations.”

Women higher in workforce

In urban areas, the unemployment rate saw an uptick of 10 bps to 6.9 per cent; males saw joblessness which rose to 6.2 per cent from 6.1 per cent, while females saw it rise similarly to 9 per cent from 8.9 per cent.

When we consider the youths, the unemployment rate edged up to 14.8 per cent in July-September from 14.6 per cent in April-June. Youth unemployment refers to those in the 15-29 years age bracket.

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Youth employment was noteworthy in urban areas, with young men witnessing joblessness. On the other hand, women saw a rise of 60 bps to 25.3 per cent.