In accordance with the ‘Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS)- Annual Report (July, 2019 – June, 2020)’ conducted by National Statistical Office (NSO), unemployment rate for women fell to 4.2% in 2019-20 from 5.1% in 2018-19.
- The findings of the survey were informed by Minister of State (MoS) Rameshwar Teli, Ministry of Labour and Employment in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
- NSO comes under the aegis of Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
- PLFS launched in 2017.
Key Points:
i.As per the PLFS 2019-20, of the total employment generated (in person days) in FY21 under MGNREGS, women’s share has increased to around 207 crore person days from 145.35 crore person days in FY20.
ii.The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for women has increased from 24.5% in 2018-19 to 30% in 2019-20.
Efforts taken by Government to improve women’s participation in the labour force:
i.The Government of India (GoI) has taken several initiatives to improve women’s participation in the labour force including incorporation of protective provisions in the labour laws.
ii.GoI also provides training to the women Labour force through a network of Women Industrial Training institutes, National Vocational Training Institutes and Regional Vocational Training Institutes.
Employment generating schemes by GoI:
Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP); Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS); Pt. DeenDayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY); Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM); Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY); Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY); and Aatmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojna (ABRY) Scheme.
Under ABRY, Government of India is providing for a period of two years both the employees’ share (12% of wages) and employer’s share (12% of wages) of contribution payable or only the employees’ share, depending on employment strength of the EPFO registered establishments. The new employees under the scheme include those who lost their jobs during Covid-19 and didn’t join in any EPF covered establishment upto September 30, 2020.
Points to be noted:
i.The government has increased MGNREGA wage to Rs. 202 a day from Rs. 182 to benefit nearly 13.62 crore families.
ii.The GoI also enhanced paid maternity leave from 12 weeks to 26 weeks, provision for mandatory creche facility in the establishments having 50 or more employees, permitting women workers in the night shifts with adequate safety measures, etc like employment of women in the aboveground mines including opencast workings between 7 pm and 6 am.
Recent Related News:
The National Statistical Office (NSO), MoSPI estimated India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for Q4 FY21 at 1.6% with a contraction of 7.3(-7.3)% for FY21(Earlier projection 8(-8)%) against 4% expansion in FY20.
About Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI):
Minister of State (MoS), Independent Charge – Rao Inderjit Singh
Constituency– Gurugram (Haryana)
