BHUBANESWAR : Despite several interventions by government, Odisha continues to post a poor employment outcome. A majority of Odisha’s youth is neither into employment, education nor training and the rate of unemployment among educated youth is highest in the state.
This was revealed in the India Employment Report-2024, released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Institute of Human Development (IHD) earlier this week. The IHD and ILO analysed the trends and patterns of the Indian labour market over the past two decades, including the impact of the Covid-19 crisis. They evaluated the employment scenario in 22 major states in five regions of the country including Odisha.
The report flagged concerns about the employment scenario in the state. It stated Odisha ranked the lowest as far as employment outcome is concerned in 2005 and saw no change in the scenario in 2022. “Significant variations in employment outcomes exist across states, with certain states consistently ranking lower in employment indicators. States like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh have struggled with poor employment outcomes over the years, reflecting the influence of regional policies,” the report stated.
Although the employment condition index improved between 2004-05 and 2021-22, Odisha along with Bihar, Jharkhand and UP remained at the bottom throughout this period. Gender-wise, the male employment condition index in Odisha was 22 (rank among 22 states) in 2005 as well as 2022. Likewise, for the female index, the rank was 22 in 2005 and improved slightly to 21 in 2022.
The employment condition index is based on seven labour market outcome indicators including percentage of workers employed in regular formal work, percentage of casual labourers, percentage of self-employed workers below the poverty line, work participation rate, average monthly earnings of casual labourers, unemployment rate of secondary and above-educated youth, and youth not in employment and education or training. When it comes to the workforce participation rate (15 years and above), the percentage declined from 54.8 in 2005 to 46.23 in 2022. While close to 41.6 pc youth in the state are not into employment, education or training, the unemployment rate among educated youths rose from 35.93 pc in 2022. While the state is witnessing rise in youth population, it is not able to generate enough jobs for them, the report pointed out.