PERIODIC LABOUR FORCE SURVEY

(PLFS)

Submitted by- atrayee mukhopadhyay

 PERIODIC LABOUR FORCE
SURVEY(PLFS)
Introduction:
One of the major statistical hurdles in our country is the estimation of reliable employment and
unemployment data. The NSSO (National Sample Survey Office) was historically conducting
Employment and Unemployment Surveys as part of its National Sample Surveys. These surveys
were the prime source for statistics about employment and unemployment situation in the country.
What do you mean by Periodic Labour Force Survey?

The employment and unemployment surveys undertaken by the National Sample Survey Office
(NSSO) are the primary source of statistics on labour force, activity participation of the population
and structure of employment and unemployment in the country.
The architecture of these surveys provides the measurement of labour force indicators in
cross classification of age, gender, education, industry, occupation, time disposition, mobility and
wages.
Starting of PLFS:

From 2017 onwards, a nationwide Labour Force Survey called Periodic

Labour Force Survey (PLFS) was launched by the NSSO. The PLFS was aimed
to provide quarterly employment and unemployment data. PLFS was first
launched from 1st April, 2017.
Objectives:
 Primary aim of the PLFS is to generate reasonably accurate indicators of
labour market at a short span for every quarter for which speed of quality
data collection and processing are important.

 Quarterly changes of various indicators of the Labour market in urban areas

as well as to generate the annual estimates of different Labour force
indicators both in rural and urban areas are the supplementary objectives of
the PLFS.
Sampling Frame for First Stage Units:
According to 2011 census data, the list of latest available Urban Frame Survey (UFS) blocks will be considered as
the urban sampling frame. And villages will be considered as rural sampling frame during this survey.

The schedules of enquiry are to be canvassed during PLFS:

• Schedule 0.0PL list of households,
• Schedule 10.4, Employment and unemployment (first visit),
• Schedule 10.4, Employment and unemployment (revisit or second visit)

Total sample size (FSUs): 12800 FSUs (7024 villages and 5776 UFS blocks) will be covered annually at
all-India level.
New features of PLFS:
Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI)

Method has been adopted to get quick data. World Bank CAPI software (Survey Solutions)
has been customized to the Indian requirement to conduct the survey.

The usage of technology is another intervention introduced in the PLFS for the
first time by NSS. NSS adopted world bank Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI)
solution platform with appropriate inputs for the PLFS. Data of PLFS was collected in the field
using tablets, and the CAPI solution with an in-built data validation process.
Employment Unemployment indicators:
Results of PLFS can be brought out in form of an Anuual Key Report, which would contain detailed
tables for both rural and urban sectors, and Quarterly Bulletians, which would contain, for the urban sector,
estimates of changes in key labour force parameter like LFPR, WPR,UR in current weekly status.
Annual estimates (for both rural and urban areas) would be generated for major parameters like:
 Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): LFPR is defined as the percentage of persons in labour force( i.e
working or seeking or available for the work.)
 Worker Population Ratio (WPR): WPR is defined as the percentage of employed persons in the population.
 Proportion Unemployed (PU): It is defined as the percentage of the unemployed persons in the
population.
 Unemployment Rate (UR): UR is defined as the percentage of persons unemployed among the persons in
the labour force.
 Distribution of workers by industry, occupation, workers employed in informal sector.
 Conditions of employment of the workers.
Different approaches for determining activity status:

 Usual activity status(UA)or Principal Activity status(PA): The activity status on

which a person spent relatively long time (major time criterion) during last 365 days of preceding
date of survey.
 Subsidiary economic activity status: The activity status in which a person in addition
to his/her usual principal status, perform some economic activity* for 30 days or more for the
reference period of 365 days of preceding the date of survey.
 Current weekly activity status (CWS): The person is considered as employed if
he/she worked for at least 1 hour on at least last 1day, during 7days of preceding date of survey.
 Current daily activity status (CDS): If on a day, a person ‘had actually worked for 1
hour or more’, or ‘had work for 1hour or more but he did not do the work’, considered to be the
current daily status.

(Economic activity: Any activity that results in the production of goods and services (even for the own
consumption), that add the value to the national product)
 Criterion for hamlet-group/ sub-block formation in urban sector:

The criteria to be adopted for hg/sb formation is equality of population content and geographical contiguity. The hg’s/sb’s will be
selected from large village/block, one with the maximum population and the other by simple random method of remaining hg’s/sb’s.

approximate present population of the no. of hg’s/sb’s to be formed

sample FSU
less than 1200 (no hamlet-groups/sub-blocks) 1

1200 to 1799 3
1800 to 2399 4
2400 to 2999 5
3000 to 3599 6
…………..and so on
Criterion for hamlet-group/ sub-block formation in rural sector:

The criteria to be adopted for hg/sb formation is equality of population content and geographical contiguity. The
hg’s/sb’s will be selected from large village/block, one with the maximum population and the other by simple
random method of remaining hg’s/sb’s.
approximate present population of the no. of hg’s/sb’s to be formed
sample FSU
less than 600 (no hamlet-groups/sub- 1
blocks)
600 to 899 3
900 to 1199 4
1200 to 1499 5
1500 to 1799 6
…………..and so on