The sanctified cockroaches, an epithet given by a tall member of the judiciary, are rocking the country’s systems as a deep unemployment or disguised job situation engulfs. While the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023-24 puts overall unemployment at around 3%, it reveals a much deeper youth employment crisis. Gen Z faces an unemployment rate of 11.9%, exposing the widening gap between the stated rapid economic growth and the creation of stable, productive jobs. India’s much-vaunted demographic dividend is therefore under strain, compounded by uncertain forms of employment, including short-term defence schemes like Agniveer.
The challenge is particularly acute among educated young people. Graduate unemployment stands at 29% among young men and 36.9% among young women, highlighting the economy’s limited capacity to absorb an increasingly educated workforce.
The Economic Survey 2025–26 has warned of the growing vulnerability of gig work, or casualisation of employment rising 55% between FY21 and FY25. Paid per task rather than through regular salaries, and often without adequate social security, gig workers face punishing work pressures while bearing much of the economic risk. India may be creating more work, but increasingly at the cost of job security and dignity.
The problem, therefore, is not simply a shortage of jobs but a shortage of stable, productive and formal employment. India needs to move beyond a model of growth that expands output without generating enough jobs. Labour-intensive manufacturing, industry-oriented skills, stronger links between education and employment, and a significant expansion of formal-sector opportunities are essential.
Gen Z represents a large and increasingly important segment of India’s working-age population. PLFS 2023–24 data indicate an estimated 29.94% Gen Z individuals in India’s labour market. This generation sits at the heart of India’s demographic opportunity. With the country seeking to become a $30-trillion economy by 2047, its ability to convert a young population into a skilled, productive workforce will be decisive. Is it a practical solution? Why was the target not put at 2030? Forget millennials, even Gen Z would not be there in 2047.
Is setting a target so far into the future not an escapist idea? By the time it comes to be judged, most of those making the promise may no longer be around —a promise virtually in the mists of time. Or is it way to camouflage the risk turning into a demographic burden? Instead, high unemployment and the expansion of informal and gig work raise a fundamental question: Can rapid economic growth generate enough decent and productive employment?
India’s gig economy is expanding rapidly as a large young workforce confronts a shortage of formal, salaried jobs. Low entry barriers, flexible hours and quick payments give illusion of gig work being attractive. Digital aggregator mostly sublet large businesses and expand rapidly while avoiding many costs of permanent employment.
The model also shifts much of the business risk from companies to workers. Fuel, vehicle maintenance, fluctuating demand and income insecurity are largely borne by the worker, often without adequate social security. Thus, while companies gain scale and lower costs, workers lose bargaining power and stable incomes.
The employment crisis is also placing growing pressure on household finances. Families are spending heavily on higher education in the hope of securing better jobs, but when education fails to translate into employment, these investments become a financial burden, weakening household savings and, in turn, domestic consumption.
Employment opportunities also vary sharply across states, with unemployment reportedly ranging from 8.3% in Goa to 0.9% in Gujarat, reflecting wide differences in industrialisation, investment, infrastructure and labour absorption capacity.
To fully realise demographic dividend, India must align educational output with dynamic labour market demands, transitioning Gen Z from informal precarity to secure, high-quality, and tech-resilient formal employment. Would it happen or be a pipedream?
INFA
