Conference on Labour Force Survey Highlights Push for High-Frequency Employment Data
The deliberations reaffirmed that PLFS’s high-frequency data will play a critical role in shaping policies for jobs, skilling, and economic planning, while advancing India’s statistical capacity to international standards.
New Delhi, August 28: The National Statistics Office (NSO), under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), on Thursday convened a Data Users’ Conference (DUC) on the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) to showcase innovations in high-frequency labour market data and its applications for policymaking.
The event, held at Kaushal Bhawan, brought together over 200 participants, including economists, academicians, researchers, policymakers, and international experts. It was chaired by MoSPI Secretary Dr. Saurabh Garg, with Labour Secretary Vandana Gurnani and NSS Director General Geeta Singh Rathore in attendance.
In her address, Rathore underlined PLFS’s role in evidence-based policymaking, noting that quarterly bulletins and monthly estimates are now regularly released. Garg highlighted efforts to cut publication lags, expand the PLFS sample size, and make datasets more accessible. He stressed the need to align the survey with evolving economic realities and user needs.
Labour Secretary Gurnani emphasized the importance of PLFS data in emerging areas such as the gig economy and artificial intelligence, urging closer collaboration between MoSPI and the Labour Bureau. She also pointed to the relevance of administrative datasets such as EPFO records and new job-linked initiatives like PM Vishwakarma and PM Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana.
The technical sessions featured an NSO presentation on the revamped PLFS framework and the Ministry of Labour’s Occupation Shortage Index (OSI), which identifies workforce gaps based on wages, growth, and skill mismatches. The Ministry of Skill Development highlighted how PLFS guides programmes like PMKVY, DDUGKY, and NAPS.
A panel titled “Fast Data, Big Impact” explored how high-frequency PLFS estimates could inform short-term policy interventions, help industries adapt strategies, and align Indian labour statistics with global benchmarks. Experts cautioned against over-interpreting monthly fluctuations but agreed on the value of integrating PLFS data with macro indicators such as CPI, IIP, and GDP.
The conference also addressed concerns about data robustness, with officials noting that PLFS now covers 770 districts and has shifted to district-level as the primary stratum, reducing standard errors and enabling localized analysis.
The deliberations reaffirmed that PLFS’s high-frequency data will play a critical role in shaping policies for jobs, skilling, and economic planning, while advancing India’s statistical capacity to international standards.
