Centre questions Citigroup’s report on employment in India

Union Labour Ministry disputes Citigroup report on Indian employment data, citing official sources and highlighting positive job market trends.

The Union Labour Ministry questioned the findings of a report prepared by the United States-based banking giant Citigroup and said the group failed to account for the “comprehensive and positive employment data” available from official sources such as the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) and the Reserve Bank of India’s capital, labour, energy, material and services (KLEMS) data.

In a statement on Monday, the Ministry said it strongly “rebuts” reports which do not analyse all official data sources available in the public domain. The Citigroup’s report had said that India will struggle to create sufficient employment opportunities even with a 7% growth rate and had asked the Centre to fill one million vacancies in various government posts. The Congress had supported the findings of the report and blamed the Centre’s policies for the decrease in employment opportunities.

The Ministry, quoting PLFS and KLEMS data, said India has generated more than eight crore employment opportunities from 2017-18 to 2021-22. “This translates to an average of over two crore employment per year, despite of the fact that the world economy was hit by COVID-19 pandemic during 2020-21 which contradicts Citigroup’s assertion of India’s inability to generate sufficient employment. This significant employment creation demonstrates the effectiveness of various government initiatives aimed at boosting employment across sectors,” the Centre said.

Citing PLFS data, it added that during the last five years, more employment opportunities have been generated compared to the number of people joining the labour force, resulting in a consistent reduction in the unemployment rate. “This is a clear indicator of the positive impact of government policies on employment. Contrary to the report, which suggests a dire employment scenario, the official data reveals a more optimistic picture of the Indian job market,” it said.

“The Ministry of Labour and Employment emphasises the credibility and comprehensiveness of official data, cautioning against the selective use of private data sources that can lead to misleading conclusions about India’s employment scenario,” it added.