PLFS to add digital platform worker stratum from January 2027
Why in the news
On 23 October 2026 the National Statistics Office (NSO) of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) published proposed changes to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) from January 2027. Stakeholders can send comments within 15 days of the press note.
Key facts
- Panel 6: fresh samples for 2027-2028 will be drawn from an updated sampling frame. The frame reflects the updated Urban Frame Survey, changes in districts and urbanisation, and updates to the rural frame based on Census 2011.
- Digital platform stratum: a new second-stage stratum (SSS) is added and the existing SSS structure stays.
- New question: a yes/no question in Schedule 0.0PL will ask if any household member did digital platform work in the reference period.
- Unpaid activities: Schedule 10.4 adds questions on own-use production, unpaid domestic and caregiving work, volunteering and unpaid trainee work for persons aged 15+. They are asked only at the first visit, so results will be annual.
- Transition: January–March 2027 will use first-stage units from both Panel 5 and Panel 6. RSE estimates will not be published for those months.
| Item | Rural | Urban |
|---|---|---|
| Second-stage strata | 4 | 5 |
| Households per FSU | 14 | 14 |
About PLFS
PLFS has run since 2017. From January 2025 its design was revamped to give monthly, quarterly and annual estimates, as well as sub-state indicators. Digital platform workers, a subset of gig workers, have been surveyed on an experimental basis since January 2026.
Exam angle
- PLFS is conducted by NSO under MoSPI.
- Platform workers are a subset of gig workers.
- Measuring unpaid work helps capture care work, much of which is done by women.