Organization of the Employee Benefit Fund
The number of new formal jobs created in a month rose to a 10-month high in May, signalling a recovery in the country’s formal labour market, according to the latest monthly payroll data released by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) on Saturday.
The data showed that the number of new monthly subscribers under the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) rose by almost 11 percent in May to 985,000 from 887,000 in April.
Earlier, in July 2023, 1.09 million new formal workers had joined the EPF. The EPFO data is considered crucial as only the formal workforce enjoys social security benefits and is protected by labour laws.
Of the total 985,000 new EPF subscribers in May, the share of young people in the 18-25 age group was 58.4 percent (575,000). This is crucial as subscribers in this age group are typically new to the labour market, reflecting its robustness. In addition, the share of women among the total number of new subscribers was 25.1 percent (248,000) during the month.
Meanwhile, net subscriber growth, calculated by taking into account the number of new subscribers, the number of subscribers who left and the return of old subscribers to the social security organization, rose to 1.95 million in May.
“The addition during the month is the highest since the first payroll data was released in April 2018. This increase in membership can be attributed to a number of factors including increased employment opportunities, growing awareness of employee benefits and the effectiveness of EPFO’s outreach programmes,” the labour ministry said in a statement.
However, net monthly wage figures are provisional in nature and are often revised sharply the following month. Therefore, the new EPF subscriber figure is considered more reliable than net additions.
“Payroll data shows that around 1.4 million members have left EPFO and subsequently re-joined. These members have changed jobs and re-joined the institutions under the purview of EPFO and have chosen to transfer their accumulated funds instead of applying for a permanent settlement. This has ensured their long-term financial well-being and extended their social security protection,” the statement said.
The Department of Labor also stated that the above payroll data is provisional as generating the data is an ongoing process, just as updating personnel files is an ongoing process.
| Month | New EPF subscribers |
| June 2023 | 1072808 |
| July | 1099052 |
| August | 982704 |
| September | 950527 |
| oct | 829762 |
| November | 762513 |
| December | 840584 |
| January 2024 | 807865 |
| February | 777717 |
| March | 747146 |
| April | 887438 |
| Be able to | 985,000 |
Source: EPFO
First print: Jul 20, 2024 | 6:31 PM IST