NEW DELHI: India is the fastest growing economy, but getting a job here is now harder than ever, as the country has struggled to convert its high economic growth rate into good jobs, says report by Azim Premji University’s Centre for Sustainable Employment (CSE).
A 10 per cent increase in GDP results in less than 1 per cent increase in employment, and the rate of unemployment among youth and those who have completed higher education has reached 16 per cent, according to the ‘State of Working India 2018’ report. The rate of “open unemployment” is now over 5 per cent.
In comparison, the unemployment rate in the United States is 3.8 per cent, while it hovers around 4 per cent in China.
Total employment in India shrank by seven million between 2013 and 2015, according to the report; and recent data from private sources show that the absolute decline continued past 2015.
The report also criticised a recent study that claimed the economy generated 13 million new jobs in 2017, saying the “optimistic conclusion depends on selective use of data and unjustified assumptions”.
On average monthly income, it said 82 per cent of men and 92 per cent of women workers earn less than Rs 10,000. The minimum salary recommended by the Seventh Central Pay Commission (CPC), meanwhile, was Rs 18,000 per month.
The report further noted that most sectors, excluding agriculture, saw an increase of at least 3-4 per cent in real wages annually since 2000. Another challenge in the sector is the gender disparity in terms of wages. Women earn 35-85 per cent of what men do, depending on their jobs and level of education, according to the study.
Pay rising
Wage rates have grown in most sectors at 3% per annum or more
But 82% male and 92% female workers earn less than Rs 10,000 a month
From 2010 to 2015, real wages grew at a CAGR of 2% for organised manufacturing, 4% for unorganised manufacturing, 5% for unorganised services and 7% for agriculture
In 2015, 67% households reported monthly earnings of Rs 10,000 or less; 98% earned less than Rs 50,000 a month
Overall, the level of wages in all sectors is still far below a ‘decent wage’ of at least Rs 18,000 per month as group D salary recommended by the Central Pay Commission
Productivity vs salary
Labour productivity in organised manufacturing increased by six times over the past three decades but wages increased by only 1.5 times
Gender disparity
Women form 16% of all service sector workers, but 60% of domestic workers
Overall, women earn 65% of men’s earnings