ILO Decent Work Team and Office for the Caribbean May 2014, Grenada

1. " Development of Labour Force Surveys in the Caribbean: Recent Issues ILO Decent Work Team and Office for the Caribbean May 2014, Grenada

2. What we will discuss • LFS in the Caribbean • Reviews/revisions and issues • Developments in the OECS region • Use of the LFS results • 19th ICLS decisions: implications • What is next

3. LFS in the Caribbean • Where are we? • Limits of the survey approach in the region • Economies of scale • Limited Capacity • We use the proxy-respondent method (benefits and challenges) • Linkage with the Pop Census • Sample frame • Infra-structure • Training ground • Comparison

4. Reviews/revisions and issues • Overview: • 2002-2004 CLMIS (ILO & US-DOL/BLS) • 2008-2009 ILO selected NSOs: • Other reviews and revisions • Integration of IT • Sampling

5. 2002-04 reviews and revisions • Enhancement of Questionnaire design • Review/revision of Sampling • Two “approaches”  ILO & BLS

6. 2008-09 reviews and revisions • Focus on harmonisation (selected countries (Bah, Barb, Jam, St Lucia Trinidad and Tobago): • Concepts and definitions • Application of international standards • Harmonisation  regional series • Standardised database of LFS rounds/share micro data • Inclusion of informality (first step in 123 method) and under-employment • Group consensus …. Report to SCCS • Implementation: • Country preparations for project design • Implementation relied on country initiative/funding

7. Integration of IT • Data input technology: • Scanning • Benefits • Challenges • Handheld Computer aided interviewing • Benefits • Challenges • Cartography • Mobile phones an unsed option? • Dissemination • Web sites • Micro-data files

8. Sampling • Variation in quarterly/annual estimates • Linked samples design (to reduce variance): • Response rates  repeatedly visited HH in small societies • Does not really work with annual surveys • Larger Samples • Experimented with “Moving average” in Suriname • Annualised data • Simple average of rounds • Annualise at the level of the sample design … having a master sample may • Still “strange movements” … Non-sampling errors • Data collection … impact of IT • Data processing … imputation

9. LFS Plus • Housing info • Migration • Poverty measurement • Challenges • Applying the 19th ICLS resolution • What is the limit

10. Developments in the OECS region • Harmonised questionnaire: • Informality • Underemployment • Limited income measurement • Extensive field manual … will do the same for data processing • Standardised tabulation datasets/sharing of micro data • Harmonised output/tabulation plan • Sub-Regional pool of experts

11. Use of the LFS results • Employment/labour market analysis • National Accounts/Productivity • Social policy • Macro-economic policy

12. 19th ICLS decisions: implications • Objective: Revisedframework for Work & Labour Force Statistics • Two main conceptual issues: • employment/work  5 categories of “work” • Under-utilisation • How does this relate to us • Measurement level • What next

13. Narrow the scope of “Employment” definition • Economic activity as defined in SNA: Production of goods and services • Market units • Non-market units (i.e. government and non-profit institutions • Households • Classification of the working population according to labour force status, using the short reference period: • In employment (para 27): a) at work and b) not at work • In unemployment, as defined in paragraph 47 • Outside the labour force (para 16): a) potential labour force” or b) “not-potential labour force” (para 51)

14. Narrower scope “Employment” definition • New conceptual approach promotes two notions or basic forms of work: • Income-generating work as the core definition of work • Other non-income forms of work to be understood, measured and presented separately: • Work/production for own use (of goods and of services) • Unpaid trainee work • Volunteer work

15. Measuring forms of work in the LFS • No major challenge • Income generating work • Unpaid trainee work and Voluntary work • Most challenging … work of own use producers (sub-category of Subsistence foodstuff producers): • Is integrated into LFS … but no exact separation possible: • Based on definition of “employed” • Probing questions to capture for informal work for own consumption • Based on required information Separate module

16. Major issues measuring Own use producers • Mayor issues in measurement: • Working time of own-use producers (by each relevant activity cluster collected using short time units (such as minutes or hours according to the source) • Estimated value of the goods produced and/or consumed/retained by the household(s) • Estimated amount and/or value of any part or surplus sold or bartered • Expenses incurred in relation to this production

17. Major source for measuring work • Integrated LFS or LFS with modules on: • Own-use production work • Unpaid trainee work • Volunteer work • Specialized household surveys: • time-use, • education and training, • volunteering, • agriculture, • child labour • labour migration

18. In Summary

19. Five categories of work • Economic activity as defined in SNA • Intended destination of the production (for own final use; or for use by others, i.e. other economic units) • Nature of the transaction (i.e. monetary or non-monetary transactions, and transfers) • New conceptual approach two basic forms of work: • Own-use production work goods & services for own final use • Employment work  for others in exchange for pay or profit • Unpaid trainee work for others without pay to acquire workplace experience or skills • Volunteer work  non-compulsory work performed for others without pay • Other work activities (not defined in this resolution)

20. Labour Under-utilisation • Limit Unemployment concept to seeking “income generating work” (paid employment) while • Highlighting (time related) under-employment • Limiting the relaxation of the “seeking” requirement • Introducing non-seeking persons in the analytical frame work indicating their labour market market attachment • Three forms of Labour under-utilisation: • Time-related underemployment • Unemployment • Potential labour force

21. Definitions • Time-related underemployment: • when the working time of persons in employment is insufficient in relation to alternative employment situations in which they are willing and available to engage • Unemployment: • Reflecting an active job search by persons not in employment who are available for this form of work • Potential labour force, • Referring to persons not in employment who express an interest in this form of work but for whom existing conditions limit their aactive job search and/or their availability

23. How does this relate to us • The region’s approach to unemployment • Slow job creation and High, structural unemployment • Employment … large informal sectors … own production own final use • Follow resolution and develop measures applicable to the local conditions while referencing to the international standards

24. Measurement level • Using existing LFS instruments re-classifying and/or approximating new concepts • New or additional measurement instruments • Short term focus on • New limited employment concept • Re-classify based on existing measurement • Align measurement of unemployment to “new approach” • Unemployment: • Re-classify based on existing measurement • Align measurement of unemployment to “new approach”

25. Next Steps • Resolution seems flexible in its approach to (immediate) implementation • Review new conceptual approach and identify challenges and opportunities to apply it • Develop a regional strategy/approach to: • revise/design additional measurement instruments • Develop tabulation based on existing measurement • Regional Task Force?

26. Decent Work Thank you! The International Labour Organization ILO Decent Work Team and Country Office for the Caribbean www.ilocarib.org.tt