The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has reported a net addition of 18.53 lakh members in August, reflecting a 9.07% rise compared to 16.9 lakh members in August 2023, according to the latest government data revealed on Sunday.
The Ministry of Labour and Employment released the data, showing a 7.03% month-on-month decline from July’s record-breaking 19.94 lakh jobs—the highest since EPFO began computing data in 2018. The ministry highlighted that 9.3 lakh new members enrolled in August 2024, representing a 0.48% increase from August 2023.
This rise is attributed to growing job opportunities, heightened awareness of employee benefits, and successful outreach by EPFO.
Notably, 59.26% of the new recruits, equivalent to 8.06 lakh, were young adults aged 18-25, reflecting the trend of first-time job seekers entering the formal sector. The data also showed that 3.79 lakh new female members joined EPFO in August 2024, marking a 10.4% increase from the previous year. Additionally, out of new members added, 2.5 lakh new female members were added.
Furthermore, around 13.5 lakh EPFO members left and later rejoined, a 14.03% year-on-year increase.
“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.”
The state-wise data shows that Maharashtra alone accounted for 20.59% of the total new member additions in August 2024. Together Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, and Gujarat contributed 59.1% of the total net member additions, adding a total around 10.97 lakh net members during the month.
“The states/UTs of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Delhi, Gujarat, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh individually added more than 5% of the total net members during the month,” it adds.
Industry-wise, sectors such as trading, engineering, construction, agriculture, and beedi making saw notable increases in EPFO membership. Of the total net membership, around 40.36% addition is from expert services (consisting of manpower suppliers, normal contractors, security services, miscellaneous activities etc.).
The net payroll figures are provisional and may undergo revisions in the subsequent month.
EPFO data tracks new members, withdrawals, and rejoining members to calculate the net payroll on a monthly basis. It has been releasing payroll data since April 2018, covering the period from September 2017 onwards.
