The percentage of Indians with good jobs is upfrom where it was two years ago but it provides little strong evidence thatIndia's sluggish economy is firmly on the mend, according to a new survey.
About one in four Indian adults (26 percent) were employedfull time for an employer in the first half of 2012, according to Gallup's newPayroll to Population metric released Wednesday.
The measure provides a clear-cut indicator of employmentthat is not affected by shifts in the size of the workforce and is highlycorrelated with GDP, the leading US opinion poll organisation said.
While the working-age population shrinks in advancedcountries and neighbouring economic powerhouse China, Gallup's data reinforcethat India's still burgeoning young population is not used to its economicpotential.
Indians between the ages of 15 and 30 are as likely as theirolder counterparts to be employed full time for at least 30 hours per week, butthey are nearly five times more likely to be unemployed and twice as likely tobe underemployed, it said.
However, there are some positive signs for young Indians.More than one in five (22 percent) young Indians who work full time for anemployer report working in white-collar jobs-defined as professional workers infields such as business or education.
Further, the majority of young Indians who work full timefor an employer report working in blue-collar type jobs-in fields such asmanufacturing, agriculture, or other industries-but they are less likely to beemployed in agriculture than older Indians.
While less than 10 percent of jobs for all age groups are inmanufacturing, this is a potential area for growth particularly with thelarge-scale rural-urban migration going on in India, Gallup said.
By some estimates, as many as 300 million young Indians areexpected to enter the workforce by 2025 -- meaning the problem with high youthunemployment and underemployment in India is only likely to get worse, it said.
Results are based on face-to-face interviews withapproximately 5,000 adults, aged 15 and older, conducted each year in India.Results for 2012 are aggregated results combining the first two quarters in2012.