Unemployment rate shoots up to 12-month high of 11.9% in May Unemployment for June 2020 had come down to 10.18 per cent in June 2020 after it touched its peak of 23 per cent amid severe lockdown curbs in May 2020 Manoj Sharma | June 3, 2021 | Updated 15:32 IST Over 1 crore people lost their jobs because of the second wave of coronavirus The unemployment rate shot up to a 12-month high at 11.9 per cent in May compared to 7.97 per cent in April as most states remained under lockdown amid the second wave of Covid-19, data from the private think tank Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) shows. Unemployment for June 2020 had come down to 10.18 per cent after it touched its peak of 23 per cent amid severe lockdown curbs in May 2020. The high unemployment rate for May reflects joblessness across urban and rural areas. Urban and rural areas account for 14.73 per cent and 10.63 per cent unemployment rate, respectively.