Of people aged 15 and older, what share is in the workforce, either working or actively looking for work. The series now reaches back two decades: participation fell economy-wide from 2004 to 2017 and recovered after, with the Muslim rate trailing throughout.
higher is better
vs all communities: -5.1pp behind
Explore the interactive chart, with breakdowns by working vs looking, sex, and urban vs rural →
| Community | Latest value |
|---|---|
| Muslim | 55.0% |
| Hindu | 60.9% |
| Christian | 62.8% |
| Sikh | 56.1% |
| All communities | 60.1% |
| Community | In labour force | Working |
|---|---|---|
| Muslim | 55.0% | 53.2% |
| Christian | 62.8% | 59.9% |
| Hindu | 60.9% | 59.1% |
| Sikh | 56.1% | 52.8% |
| All communities | 60.1% | 58.2% |
| Community | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| Muslim | 80.6% | 30.2% |
| Sikh | 79.2% | 33.0% |
| Hindu | 78.6% | 43.3% |
| Christian | 76.3% | 50.4% |
| All communities | 78.8% | 41.7% |
From microdata Reproduce this view. This figure is recomputed from the unit-level survey microdata, the raw NSS or PLFS records behind the linked source. Source: PLFS 2023-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · EUS microdata 2004-12 (NSS 61st/66th/68th) · EUS microdata 2004-12 (NSS 61st/66th/68th) · EUS microdata 2004-12 (NSS 61st/66th/68th). Each value is computed from the data file · transform code; every row records its own source and method.
| Community | Urban | Rural |
|---|---|---|
| Muslim | 49.4% | 58.2% |
| Sikh | 48.8% | 58.6% |
| Hindu | 52.5% | 64.4% |
| Christian | 52.9% | 68.6% |
| All communities | 52.0% | 63.7% |
From microdata Reproduce this view. This figure is recomputed from the unit-level survey microdata, the raw NSS or PLFS records behind the linked source. Source: PLFS 2023-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · PLFS microdata 2017-24 · EUS microdata 2004-12 (NSS 61st/66th/68th) · EUS microdata 2004-12 (NSS 61st/66th/68th) · EUS microdata 2004-12 (NSS 61st/66th/68th). Each value is computed from the data file · transform code; every row records its own source and method.
About 55% of Muslims aged 15 and over were working or looking for work in 2023, against 61% of Hindus, but the whole of that gap is among women. Muslim men take part at slightly higher rates than Hindu men; Muslim women, at 30%, sit far below Hindu women at 43%, and that single gap pulls the community total down.
The chart tracks the share of adults in the labour force across two decades, from the older Employment surveys to the newer PLFS; the dashed break at 2017 marks the change of survey, so do not read the step there as a real fall. The By sex tab is the one to open here: it shows the gap is almost entirely about women. Working vs looking separates the employed from those still searching, and Urban vs rural splits the rate by place.
How many adults work or seek work sets the ceiling on a community's income. A large pool of working-age people outside the labour force, most of them women, means fewer earners in each household and less to go around.
Behindgap narrowing
Muslim 55.0% vs Hindu 60.9% in 2023, 5.9pp behind. The headline gap has narrowed over twenty years, but largely because participation drifted down for everyone; the low rate among Muslim women is the part that has barely moved.
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