New Delhi: In January this year, the number of new jobs created in the formal employment sector fell to a 20-month low, according to the latest payroll data released by the Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) on Monday, March 20.
In fact, the number of new subscribers under the EPFO in January 2023 came down by 7.5% compared to December 2022. In absolute numbers, the number of new subscribers in December 2022 stood at 8,40,372, and in January 2023, it came down to 7,77,232, Business Standard reported quoting official data.
The EPFO payroll data helps to track employment creation in the formal sector, as it is mandatory for every new employee to sign up for provident fund under the EPFO. The National Statistical Office (NSO) too uses the EPFO data to analyse employment trends in the country.
The number of new subscribers stood above 1 million at the beginning of this year. However, it slid drastically by the end of January 2023 to settle at 7,77,232. The January 2023 figure is the lowest recorded figure in the last 20 months, after May 2021’s figure of 6,49,618 in May 2021.
Among the new EPF subscribers in January, 5,15,710 are in the 18-28 age group, down by 7.2% from 5,55,755 subscribers in December 2022. This figure is important given that it is the 18-28 age group that constitutes fresh job seekers in the labour market. It, in fact, helps in understanding the robustness of the labour market.
Of the new young subscribers in January 2023, 1,24,680 are women compared to 391,025 young males.
Meanwhile, the net payroll figure improved in January 2023 compared to December 2022. It rose by 16%, taking the number of EPF subscribers from 1.28 million to 1.48 million in a month’s time. The net payroll figure is worked out by taking into account the number of new subscribers, the number of exits, and the return of old subscribers.
On the other hand, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) said although the unemployment rate fell in January 2023 in comparison to December 2022 levels, it said one cannot conclude that more people ended up getting jobs.
“Past averages show that the unemployment rate usually falls in January because employment goes up. However, employment declined by 0.95 million in January. Interestingly, the number of unemployed persons declined sharply by 5.7 million in January which reflected in the lower unemployment rate. This is not because they found jobs. This is because the labour force shrank in January by 6.6 million. And, the fall in rate in January is a correction from the larger-than-normal increase (8.1 million) in jobs seen in December,” CMIE said in a statement, according to Business Standard.
