Karnataka Records 2.9% Unemployment Rate, Lowest in South India

Karnataka recorded an unemployment rate of 2.9 per cent between April and June this year, registering the lowest figure among all southern states and remaining well below the national average of 5.4 per cent, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.

Among southern peers for the population aged 15 years and above, Kerala recorded the highest unemployment rate at 8.9 per cent, followed by Andhra Pradesh at 7.4 per cent, Telangana at 5.7 per cent, and Tamil Nadu at 5.1 per cent. Karnataka’s overall labour force participation rate stood at 46.3 per cent, ranking among the highest in the region.

Despite the low overall jobless figure, female participation in the state's workforce remained a concern. Women’s labour force participation stayed below 30 per cent across all age groups. The unemployment rate among women aged 15 and above was 3.4 per cent, higher than the state average of 2.9 per cent and the 2.7 per cent recorded among men.

For youth aged between 15 and 29 years, Karnataka's unemployment rate stood at 9 per cent under the Current Weekly Status approach. The survey covered more than 11,000 individuals across over 3,000 households throughout the state.

Under the Current Weekly Status method, unemployment is measured based on activity during the seven days preceding the survey. A person is considered unemployed if they did not work even for one hour on any day during the reference week but were available or actively seeking work.

A related report by the Ministry highlighted that Bengaluru’s workforce works fewer hours compared to the average across India's million-plus cities. Workers in Bengaluru logged an average of 47.2 hours per week, compared to the national average of 49.5 hours among cities with populations over one million, a difference primarily driven by male workers.