The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has released provisional payroll figures for March 2025, indicating a net addition of 14.58 lakh members. Compared to the same month last year, this marks a 1.15 percent increase, reflecting both a rise in job creation and greater awareness of social security benefits.
In March 2025, approximately 7.54 lakh new subscribers joined EPFO. This is a 2.03 percent increase from February 2025 and 0.98 percent higher than in March 2024. The rise is credited to expanding employment avenues and greater understanding of employee entitlements.
The data highlights the significant role of the youth in workforce expansion. The 18–25 age group accounted for 4.45 lakh new subscribers, making up nearly 59 percent of all new additions in March 2025. This marks a 4.21 percent increase over the previous month and a 4.73 percent rise from March 2024. In total, 6.68 lakh net additions came from this age group, continuing the trend of first-time job seekers entering formal employment.
In terms of workforce mobility, 13.23 lakh members who had previously exited EPFO rejoined in March 2025—a modest 0.39 percent rise over February but a substantial 12.17 percent growth year-on-year. These individuals changed jobs and chose to transfer their provident fund accounts rather than settle them, thereby continuing their social security coverage.
The number of new female subscribers reached 2.08 lakh in March 2025, showing a marginal monthly rise of 0.18 percent and a year-on-year increase of 4.18 percent. Overall, net additions for women during the month stood at 2.92 lakh, up 0.78 percent from the previous year. These figures point to a growing inclusion of women in the organised workforce.
State-wise data shows that five states together contributed nearly 60 percent of the total net payroll additions in March, with Maharashtra alone accounting for over 20 percent. Other significant contributors include Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Haryana, Gujarat, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Telangana, each accounting for more than 5 percent of the total.
On an industry level, sectors such as Restaurants, Cement, General Insurance, Canteens, Forwarding Agencies, Travel Agencies, and Hotels reported notable month-on-month growth in net payroll additions.
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