In May 2026 (Q2), the working age population (16 years and above) was estimated to be 8.7 million of whom around 4.7 million were employed, 729 thousand were unemployed, and 3.3 million were out of labour force.
The labour force which includes both the employed and unemployed population was 5.4 million. The labour force participation rate was estimated to be 62.1 % which remained stable compared to the estimated value in May 2025 (62.2 %).
The rate of the population outside labour force remained stable to 37.9 % in May 2026 (Q2) compared to 37.8 % in May 2025(Q2).
Employment
The employment-to-population ratio (EPR) remained constant to 53.8 % in May 2026 (Q2), compared to May 2025 (Q2). This stability was observed across both males and females.
TABLE: Distribution of employed population by occupation group and sex
| Sex: All | Q2, 2022 | Q2, 2023 | Q2, 2024 | Q2, 2025 | Q2, 2026 |
| Employed population (Total) | 3,317,268 | 3,984,502 | 4,304,440 | 4,581,575 | 4,706,239 |
| Male | 1,875,696 | 2,175,512 | 2,347,795 | 2,470,663 | 2,549,235 |
| Female | 1,441,572 | 1,808,989 | 1,956,645 | 2,110,912 | 2,157,004 |
In May 2026 (Q2), the EPR remained higher among males (61.8%) than females (46.6 %). The gender gap in the employment-to-population ratio was 15.2 percentage points in May 2026 (Q2) and remained stable compared to May 2025 (Q2).
Additionally, the EPR was higher among adults aged 31 years and above (56.9 %) than among youth aged 16-30 years (49.6 %).
Unemployment
In May 2026(Q2), the unemployment rate was 13.4 % indicating roughly one unemployed person for every seven persons in the labour force. This rate remained stable compared to May 2025 (Q2).
The unemployment rate was higher among females (15.5 %) compared to males (11.6 %). Furthermore, youth experienced a higher unemployment rate (15.7 %) compared to adults (11.9 %). The unemployment rate was high in urban (14.1 %) than rural areas (13.1%).
The gender gap in unemployment rate was 3.9 percentage points in May 2026 (Q2) and remained stable compared to May 2025.
Labour underutilization
The unemployment rate alone does not fully reflect unmet employment needs. A more complete assessment requires consideration of other components, such as time-related underemployment and potential labour force.
The labour underutilization rate stood at 59.7 % in May 2026 (Q2). This rate was higher among females (66.1 %) than among males (52.9 %) and was equal among youth (59.7 %) and adults (59.7 %).
The labour underutilization rate increased by 2.6 percentage points in May 2026 (Q2) compared to May 2025 (Q2).