wl-3655-Counting the Invisible: Comparison of PLFS and TUS Estimates

Employment statistics, provided first by the quinquennial surveys and now by the periodic labour force surveys depict volatility in trends. Given the fact that India is in position to reap the benefits of demographic dividend, high unemployment rate among working age group raises several questions on the working of labour market and economy. To investigate the volatility and address the missing links in the employment statistics provided by these labour surveys, a comparison has been drawn between periodic labour force surveys and time use survey estimates. Departing from the traditional way of measuring employment, comparable definition of work and employment is adopted from SNA’s. This study shows that periodic labour force surveys suffer from gender bias in their employment estimates of female labour force. The paper also argues that to provide more inclusive and reliable employment statistics, time use statistics should be used to complement the periodic labour force surveys.