PLFS 2025: Monthly Jobs Data, Bigger Survey

What Happened?
 

1. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) is making big changes to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS).
2. These changes will help collect better and faster information and data about employment, unemployment, and incomes in India.
3. The updated PLFS will start from January 2025, and the first monthly report will come out in May 2025.

What is the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS)?

1. PLFS is a government survey that tracks the status of employment and unemployment in India.
2. It tells us about the number of people who are working, looking for work, or not working (like students or homemakers).

Monthly Job Reports for the First Time:

1. Employment data for rural areas was shared once a year, and for urban areas once every three months till now.
2. According to new updates the monthly reports will be released for both rural and urban areas.
3. This means the government and public will get employment updates every month, which will help in understanding the employment situation better and faster.

 

New Time Frame for Survey Year:

1. Earlier, the survey year was from July to June. But from 2025, the survey will follow the calendar year i.e., January to December.
2. This change makes it easier to:
   1. Compare India’s data with other countries.
   2. Plan policies and budgets more smoothly.

 

More Information about Households:

1. The new survey will ask households more questions to understand their financial situation better.
   1. Income from rent.
   2. Income from pensions.
   3. Income from interest on savings or investments.
   4. Income from remittances (money sent by family members working elsewhere).
2. Also, the survey will now ask:
   1. How much land a family owns.
   2. How much land they have leased out.
3. The PLFS will also collect more education-related information:
   1. Number of years of education completed.
   2. Whether the person has completed secondary school.
   3. Type of vocational or technical training received and from which institution.
   4. This will help in understanding how education levels affect job opportunities.
4. Bigger and better sample size:
   1. The new PLFS will cover:
      1. The total number of surveyed households will be around 2.72 lakh (272,304) every year.
      2. It is more than 2.5 times bigger than before.
      3. Earlier, only about 1.02 lakh households were surveyed.
   2. Multiple visits for accuracy:
      1. Each selected household will be visited four times in four months.
      2. Tracking changes in people’s job status.
      3. Getting more accurate and complete data.

 

4. 3. The updated PLFS will continue to provide important job data like:
      1. Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): How many people are working or looking for work.
      2. Worker Population Ratio (WPR): How many people are actually working.
      3. Unemployment Rate: How many people are looking for work but not getting jobs.
5. Old and new data may be different:
   1. The new survey has more questions and a bigger sample size so the data from 2025 onwards may look different from the older data.
   2. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) is thinking of creating a back-series (previous data in the new format) to make comparisons easier.

 

What are the Challenges?
 

1. Data Comparability Issues: The new system is different from the old one, comparing old and new data may be confusing or misleading. Changes in survey format, coverage, and frequency may not match new patterns.
2. Large Sample Size Management: Surveying 2.72 lakh households and visiting them four times is a huge task. It needs more staff, time, and resources to ensure accuracy.
3. Training and Capacity Building: Field workers must be properly trained to collect more detailed and new types of data. Mistakes in data collection can reduce reliability.
4. Timely Data Processing: More data means longer processing time. Delays in analysis and reporting may affect real-time policymaking.
5. Rural Data Collection Challenges: Visiting rural households monthly can be difficult due to poor connectivity, remote locations, or weather conditions.
6. Data Quality and Consistency: Repeated visits may cause changes in responses or fatigue among surveyed households. Ensuring truthful and consistent answers is a big challenge.

Way Forward
 

1. Build a Back Series of Data: Create older datasets in the new format so that comparisons are easier and more meaningful.
2. Strengthen Field Operations: Hire and train more skilled survey workers. Use digital tools to improve data accuracy and reduce paperwork.
3. Use Technology for Data Collection: Tablets, apps, and cloud-based systems can speed up data entry and analysis. GPS and real-time tracking can ensure fieldwork quality.
4. Public Awareness and Participation: Educate people about the importance of the survey. Encourage honest responses to improve data quality.
5. Faster Data Analysis and Reporting: Set up expert teams to quickly process and release data for monthly reports.
6. Collaboration with Experts: Work with academic institutions and research bodies to improve survey design and analysis.
7. Ensure Rural Focus: Make special efforts to reach remote rural areas. Use local language and culturally sensitive methods during data collection.

 

Also Read
UPSC Foundation Course	UPSC Daily Current Affairs
UPSC Monthly Magazine	CSAT Foundation Course
Free MCQs for UPSC Prelims	UPSC Test Series
ENSURE IAS NOTES	Our Booklist