The year 2025 concluded on a remarkable note for India's labor market in several respects. According to the monthly Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data, while the unemployment rate remained relatively stable, the labor force participation rate (LFPR)—particularly among women—witnessed a record increase. This trend points to profound transformations occurring in India's socio-economic landscape.

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¨     The data has been released through the Monthly Bulletin of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for December 2025.
¨     The survey is conducted by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
¨     December 2025 bulletin is the ninth monthly release after the PLFS methodology was revised from January 2025 to provide monthly and quarterly labour estimates.
The estimates are based on the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach, under which a person is considered
¨     Employed if they worked for at least 1 hour on any day during the 7 days preceding the survey date.
¨     Unemployed if they did not work even for 1 hour during the last 7 days but were seeking or available for work.
Key Labour Market Indicators
Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR)
¨     The overall LFPR rose to 56.1%, the highest level recorded in 2025.
¨     Rural LFPR increased to 59.0%, reflecting higher participation in villages. Urban LFPR declined marginally to 50.2%, indicating softer labour engagement in cities.
Female Labour Force Participation
¨     Female LFPR reached a yearly high of 35.3% in December 2025.
¨     Rural female LFPR increased to 40.1%, continuing its upward trend since June 2025.
¨     Urban female LFPR slipped slightly to 25.3%, showing divergence between rural and urban areas.
Worker Population Ratio (WPR)
¨     The overall WPR improved to 53.4%, marking the highest level in 2025.
¨     Rural male WPR rose to 76.0%, indicating strong employment absorption.
¨     Rural female WPR increased to 38.6%, reflecting better workforce inclusion.
¨     Urban male WPR declined to 70.4%, while urban female WPR remained around 23.0%.
Unemployment Rate (UR)
¨     The overall unemployment rate remained broadly stable at 4.8%.
¨     Rural UR stayed unchanged at 3.9%, indicating steady rural employment conditions.
¨     Urban UR increased to 6.7%, reflecting continued stress in urban labour markets.
¨     Urban female UR declined to 9.1%, down from its yearly peak of 9.7% in October 2025.
Survey Coverage and Methodology
¨     The monthly estimates are based on a sample of over 3.7 lakh persons across India.
¨     The survey covered 2,13,216 persons in rural areas and 1,60,774 persons in urban areas.
¨     Under the CWS approach, a person’s activity status is measured based on work done during the preceding seven days.