New Delhi: The unemployment rate (UR) among persons aged 15 years and above rose slightly to 5.2 per cent in September from 5.1 per cent in August, according to the latest Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on Wednesday.

The survey showed that while unemployment among rural residents increased from 4.3 per cent in August to 4.6 per cent in September, urban areas also saw a marginal rise from 6.7 per cent to 6.8 per cent during the same period.

Among females, the unemployment rate in urban areas climbed to 9.3 per cent from 8.9 per cent, while the overall female UR rose from 5.2 per cent in August to 5.5 per cent in September. Male unemployment also increased moderately in both rural (4.5 per cent to 4.7 per cent) and urban (5.9 per cent to 6 per cent) areas.

Despite the slight increase in unemployment, the Worker Population Ratio (WPR) improved to 52.4 per cent in September — the highest since May 2025 — mainly driven by a rise in female workforce participation in rural areas.

The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) also climbed for the third consecutive month, reaching 55.3 per cent in September from 54.2 per cent in June. The LFPR among females aged 15 years and above hit 34.1 per cent, the highest since May 2025, supported by steady gains in rural participation.

The latest estimates are based on data from 3,75,703 respondents nationwide. The current weekly status (CWS) method used in the PLFS measures employment indicators based on the previous seven days. The September report marks the sixth monthly bulletin since the revised high-frequency PLFS methodology was introduced in January.