Unemployment among young women rises to 18.7% in April; joblessness much higher in urban areas

The data revealed a significant divergence between rural and urban areas. While the unemployment rate for young women in rural areas was recorded at 16.2%, it was 24.5% in urban areas. The unemployment rate among young males in rural and urban areas stood at 13.3% and 15.9% respectively.

The overall youth unemployment rate under the current weekly status (CWS) reached a 10-month high of 15.3% in April, with the male unemployment rate at 14.1% and the women’s rate at 18.7%.

Under the CWS approach, a person was considered unemployed in a week if he/she did not work even for one hour on any day during the reference week but sought or was available for work for at least one hour on any day during that week.

The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), defined as the percentage of the population in the labour force, declined marginally to 41.2% in April, from 41.6% in March. The Worker Population Ratio (WPR), which measures the share of employed people in the population, declined to 34.9 in April from 35.3% in March.

Experts attributed the fewer job opportunities to skill mismatch, technological shifts and geopolitical turmoil.

According to a Moody’s report, if artificial intelligence adoption disproportionately reduces demand for entry and mid-level roles—especially in the services segment, which accounts for nearly 60% of urban employment and a significant share of discretionary consumption—employment uncertainty among first-time job seekers could rise, amplifying risks to consumption growth. “Compared to other major G-20 economies, India is particularly exposed to this transition given its large and growing working-age population and the high number of new entrants expected to join the labor force over the medium term,” the report noted.

Rahul Ahluwalia, Founder and Director of Foundation for Economic Development, said that in developing economies maximum employment generation for younger and lower-skilled people, especially women, happens in export-focused, labour-intensive industries like apparel, footwear and other light manufacturing. “The regulatory burden that Indian businesses face is quite heavy compared to our competitor countries, so export growth in these sectors has been slow for several years. The last year has also been full of geopolitical turmoil that has further affected export growth and job generation,” he said.

Poornima Gupta, Program Director – PGDM, Great Lakes Institute of Management Gurgaon, said India is producing a large number of educated young people, but employers continue to report gaps in job readiness—particularly in communication, problem-solving, digital capability, and workplace adaptability. This creates a classic skill mismatch: qualifications are increasing faster than employability. “Automation and AI are reducing routine jobs while increasing demand for higher-order cognitive and digital skills.”

Gupta also said that young women face the additional challenge of gender-specific barriers. These include concerns around workplace safety, limited mobility, caregiving responsibilities, and employer biases about continuity and commitment. As a result, many women are willing to work but face narrower opportunity sets than their male counterparts, Gupta said.