According to official payroll data, job creation in the country has been sluggish
Around 7,56,939 people joined formal work for the first time in October 2021, the lowest in five months, according to payroll data released by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) on Monday.
The new additions to payrolls in October are about 1,92,000 less than the new additions made in September 2021, which stood at 9,49,081 as per the data, thus indicating a slowdown in job creation.
In August and July, the new payroll additions were 9,80,954 and 9,76,630, respectively. In June, soon after the outbreak of the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, 8,80,778 new additions were added to the EPFO data.
New payroll additions in October are the lowest in five months in the current fiscal. The only month to have reported fewer new payroll additions as compared to October was May 2021, when the EPFO added 6,43,507 new subscribers.
Payroll numbers indicate a stretch in the labor market, and underline a slowdown in the pace of new job creation in the formal sector.
However, EPFO data shows that around 12.73 lakh net payrolls were added in October, which is less than the net additions recorded in September, when EPFO recorded 13.97 lakh net additions.
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