Pakistan's employed labour force increased to 77.2 million in FY2025-26, out of a total labour force of 83.14 million, according to the Pakistan Economic Survey 2025-26 released by the Ministry of Finance. The unemployment rate stood at 7.1%, while the labour force participation rate rose to 46.3%. The survey links the improvement to economic growth of 3.7% during the year, with agriculture, industry and services all expanding.

Agriculture remained the country's largest employer. The sector grew by 2.89% despite flood-related disruption and contributed 23.54% to the national economy, with livestock alone expanding by 3.75%. Industry grew by 3.51%, helped by a recovery in manufacturing: large-scale manufacturing expanded by 6.11% after contracting the previous year, creating demand for workers in textiles, apparel, food processing, automobiles, pharmaceuticals and electrical equipment. Construction grew by 5.73%, generating work for skilled and unskilled workers as well as in cement, steel, transport and housing. Services, the largest part of the economy, expanded by 4.09%.

Youth schemes and overseas jobs

The survey also records the youth programmes behind the figures. Under the Prime Minister's Youth Business and Agriculture Loan Scheme, Rs 58 billion was disbursed to 114,815 young beneficiaries between July and February of FY2026, while the youth skill development programme delivered 90,550 trainings. On overseas employment, the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment registered 762,499 workers for jobs abroad during 2025. Digital work is growing too: ICT export remittances reached $3.38 billion in July–March FY2025-26 and freelancer exports reached $856.3 million. With the population at about 252 million, the survey notes that a large youth cohort enters the labour market every year, keeping pressure on job creation. Figures as reported by INP and WE News English from the Economic Survey.