The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisations added a record 2.01 million net formal jobs in May, an increase of 3.07% compared to 1.95 million added in May 2024, as per the payroll data released on Monday. This is the highest recorded addition since payroll data tracking began in April 2018.
Month-on-month the net formal jobs went up by 5.23% compared to 1.91 million added in April 2025, shows the provisional payroll data released by the ministry of labour and employment.
“The EPFO has recorded an all-time high net member addition in May 2025, a testament to the growing strength of India’s formal employment landscape,” labour and employment minister Mansukh Mandaviya tweeted.
According to Mandaviya, this historic achievement is the direct result of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visionary leadership and the government’s unwavering commitment to pro-youth, pro-worker reforms.
“Under the Prime Minister’s guidance, our focus on ease of doing business and economic empowerment is yielding tangible outcomes, and we remain dedicated to building a robust and inclusive labour ecosystem for a Viksit Bharat,” Mandaviya tweeted.
As per the data, EPFO enrolled around 0.94 million new subscribers in May 2025, which was a dip of 4.08% when compared to May 2024 when 0.98 million new subscribers were added.
“This increase in new subscribers can be attributed to growing employment opportunities, increased awareness of employee benefits, and EPFO's successful outreach programs,” the ministry said.
Further, 59.5% of the new members or 0.56 million added in May this year were in the 18-25 age group which is 14.5% more than April 2025.
However, the net payroll addition for the age group 18-25 for May 2025 is approximately 0.87 million reflecting a growth of 15.1% compared to April 2025 and an increase of 0.11% from May 2024.
“This is in consonance with the earlier trend which indicates that most individuals joining the organized workforce are youth, primarily first-time job seekers,” it added.
The payroll data highlights that approximately 1.61 million members exited and subsequently rejoined EPFO, a year-over-year growth of 14.3% compared to 1.45 million who exited and rejoined in the corresponding month in 2024.
“These members switched their jobs and re-joined the establishments covered under the ambit of EPFO and opted to transfer their accumulations instead of applying for final settlement thus, safeguarding long-term financial well-being and extending their social security protection,” it said.
As per the data, 0.43 million net female members were added to EPFO in May while 0.26 million new female members were added in the month under consideration. The net female addition is 15.0% more compared to May 2024 while the new female member addition was 5.84% more than the corresponding month last year.
“The growth in female member additions is indicative of a broader shift towards a more inclusive and diverse workforce,” the ministry said.
State-wise analysis of payroll data denotes that the top five states and union territories constitute around 59.9% of net payroll addition, adding a total around 1.20 million net payroll during the month.
Maharashtra alone added 20.3% of net payroll during the month. As per the data, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana individually added more than 5% of the total net payroll during the month.
As per the ministry, month-on-month comparison of industry-wise data displays significant growth in the members working in establishments engaged in expert services, textiles, establishments engaged in cleaning and sweeping services, electrical, mechanical or general engineering products, financial establishments and garment making, among others.
The above payroll data is provisional since the data generation is a continuous exercise, as updating employee records is a continuous process, it added.
EPFO has been releasing payroll data from the month of April-2018, covering the period September 2017 onwards.
In monthly payroll data, the count of members joining EPFO for the first time through Aadhaar validated Universal Account Number (UAN), existing members exiting from coverage of EPFO and those who exited but re-joined as members, is taken to arrive at net monthly payroll.
Month-on-month the net formal jobs went up by 5.23% compared to 1.91 million added in April 2025, shows the provisional payroll data released by the ministry of labour and employment.
“The EPFO has recorded an all-time high net member addition in May 2025, a testament to the growing strength of India’s formal employment landscape,” labour and employment minister Mansukh Mandaviya tweeted.
According to Mandaviya, this historic achievement is the direct result of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visionary leadership and the government’s unwavering commitment to pro-youth, pro-worker reforms.
“Under the Prime Minister’s guidance, our focus on ease of doing business and economic empowerment is yielding tangible outcomes, and we remain dedicated to building a robust and inclusive labour ecosystem for a Viksit Bharat,” Mandaviya tweeted.
As per the data, EPFO enrolled around 0.94 million new subscribers in May 2025, which was a dip of 4.08% when compared to May 2024 when 0.98 million new subscribers were added.
“This increase in new subscribers can be attributed to growing employment opportunities, increased awareness of employee benefits, and EPFO's successful outreach programs,” the ministry said.
Further, 59.5% of the new members or 0.56 million added in May this year were in the 18-25 age group which is 14.5% more than April 2025.
However, the net payroll addition for the age group 18-25 for May 2025 is approximately 0.87 million reflecting a growth of 15.1% compared to April 2025 and an increase of 0.11% from May 2024.
“This is in consonance with the earlier trend which indicates that most individuals joining the organized workforce are youth, primarily first-time job seekers,” it added.
The payroll data highlights that approximately 1.61 million members exited and subsequently rejoined EPFO, a year-over-year growth of 14.3% compared to 1.45 million who exited and rejoined in the corresponding month in 2024.
“These members switched their jobs and re-joined the establishments covered under the ambit of EPFO and opted to transfer their accumulations instead of applying for final settlement thus, safeguarding long-term financial well-being and extending their social security protection,” it said.
As per the data, 0.43 million net female members were added to EPFO in May while 0.26 million new female members were added in the month under consideration. The net female addition is 15.0% more compared to May 2024 while the new female member addition was 5.84% more than the corresponding month last year.
“The growth in female member additions is indicative of a broader shift towards a more inclusive and diverse workforce,” the ministry said.
State-wise analysis of payroll data denotes that the top five states and union territories constitute around 59.9% of net payroll addition, adding a total around 1.20 million net payroll during the month.
Maharashtra alone added 20.3% of net payroll during the month. As per the data, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana individually added more than 5% of the total net payroll during the month.
As per the ministry, month-on-month comparison of industry-wise data displays significant growth in the members working in establishments engaged in expert services, textiles, establishments engaged in cleaning and sweeping services, electrical, mechanical or general engineering products, financial establishments and garment making, among others.
The above payroll data is provisional since the data generation is a continuous exercise, as updating employee records is a continuous process, it added.
EPFO has been releasing payroll data from the month of April-2018, covering the period September 2017 onwards.
In monthly payroll data, the count of members joining EPFO for the first time through Aadhaar validated Universal Account Number (UAN), existing members exiting from coverage of EPFO and those who exited but re-joined as members, is taken to arrive at net monthly payroll.
