Changes in Periodic Labour Force Survey 2025 | Key Updates & Coverage

For Prelims:

  • PLFS 2025 revamp
  • National Statistical Office (NSO)
  • Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI)
  • Labour market estimates improvement
  • Frequency, coverage, accuracy enhancement
  • Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR)
  • Worker Population Ratio (WPR)

For Mains:

  • First Stage Units (FSUs) increase 12,800 → 22,692
  • Households surveyed per FSU increase 8 → 12
  • First Stage Unit definition
  • 2011 census village
  • Urban Frame Survey (UFS) block
  • Usual activity status

Discover the revamped Periodic Labour Force Survey 2025 by NSO with improved methodology, monthly labour market estimates, expanded rural coverage, and enhanced sample size for accurate employment data in India.

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Context

  • The National Statistical Office (NSO) has revamped the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) methodology from January 2025 to improve frequency, coverage, and accuracy of labour market estimates.

About PLFS

  • It is a survey conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) to estimate key employment and unemployment indicators in India. PLFS releases both monthly and annual data.
  • Monthly bulletins provide estimates of labor market indicators like Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), Worker Population Ratio (WPR), and Unemployment Rate (UR) in Current Weekly Status (CWS) separately for males and females. 
  • Annual report providing estimates in both usual status and CWS. 

Key Changes

Monthly Estimate Introduced

  • It will enable the generation of the monthly estimates of key labour market indicators viz. LFPR, WPR, and UR at the all-India level following the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach. 

Quarterly Estimates Extended to Rural Areas

  • Upto December 2024, PLFS provided quarterly labour market indicators for the urban areas only. 
  • Now available for the entire country, improving rural employment data.

Enhanced Sample Size & Coverage

  • First Stage Units (FSUs) increased from 12,800 to 22,692 annually.  
  • The number of households to be surveyed within a selected geographical unit (FSU) has been increased from 8 to 12 households. 

About First Stage Unit

  • First Stage Units (FSUs) are the basic geographical units used for sample selection. 
  • In rural areas, the FSU is typically the 2011 census village (or Panchayat ward in Kerala). In urban areas, it’s the Urban Frame Survey (UFS) block. 
  • The FSUs are the initial units from which households are then selected for the survey. 

Conceptual Framework

  • Activity status of a person is determined on the basis of the activities pursued by the person during the specified reference period. 
  • Current weekly status (CWS): Activity status determined on the basis of a reference period of last 7 days preceding the date of survey.
  • Usual activity status: Activity status determined on the basis of the reference period of last 365 days preceding the date of survey
  • Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): LFPR is defined as the percentage of persons in the labour force (i.e. working or seeking or available for work) in the population.
  • Worker Population Ratio (WPR): WPR is defined as the percentage of employed persons in the population. 
  • Unemployment Rate (UR): UR is defined as the percentage of persons unemployed among the persons in the labour force.

Prelims:

Q. PRELIMS QUESTION
With reference to the ‘National Statistical Office (NSO)’, consider the following statements:
  1. It is an attached office under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
  2. It is responsible for conducting large-scale sample surveys in various fields, including employment and unemployment.
  3. The data it collects is used for calculating GDP and other macroeconomic indicators.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
A. 1 and 2 only
B. 2 and 3 only
C. 1 and 3 only
D. 1, 2 and 3

Ans:

Mains:

Q. MAINS QUESTION 2020, GS 3
Account for the changes in the employment pattern in India over the last few decades.

Ans:



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