The rate of unemployment rose to a four-year high in 2016-’17 following the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 banknotes on November 8, 2016, the Labour Bureau has said in an unreleased report, Business Standard reported on Friday.

The Labour Bureau’s Sixth Annual Employment-Unemployment Survey said that the unemployment rate was 3.4% in 2013-’14, 3.7% in 2015-’16 and 3.9% in 2016-’17. The unemployment rate is the proportion of the labour force available for work but unable to get a job.

However, the Labour Force Participation Rate rose from 75.5% in 2015-’16 to 76.8% in 2016-’17, the report said. This is the proportion of the working age population that has a job or is seeking one.

The Business Standard said, citing unidentified officials, that Labour and Employment Minister Santosh Gangwar approved the report in December 2018, but its release has been withheld by the government. The newspaper said it has accessed parts of the report.

The Labour Bureau will no longer publish reports on jobs, as it will be replaced by the National Sample Survey Office’s period labour force survey. However, this office is yet to come out with the 2017-’18 survey.