Labor Statistics in the United
States
Grace York
March 2004
Labor Statistics Includes
Basic employment and labor
force data
Welfare of the labor force
Industrial employment issues
Basic Employment Data
Employed persons and salary by
industry and occupation
Unemployed persons (actively
looking for work)
Labor Force (combination of
employed and those unemployed
who are looking for work)
Labor Force Data
May be broken down by demographic
characteristics
Age
Race
Sex
Educational attainment
Marital status
Number of children
People Not in Labor Force
Examples:
Retired
Disabled
Caring for children
Students
Data incorporated in Census rather than
labor statistics
Welfare of Workers
Examples:
Salaries
Benefits (vacation, insurance)
Worker injuries
Consumer price index
Consumer expenditures
Industrial Employment Issues
Examples:
Labor unions
Labor strikes
Employment cost index
Worker Productivity
Two U.S. Statistical Agencies
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
– Conducts surveys of industries and
governments on all aspects of labor and
prices
U.S. Census Bureau
– Conducts surveys of individuals on
employment status
– Conducts surveys of industries on finances
(employment, payrolls, income)
Bureau of Labor Statistics
http://www.bls.gov/
BLS Handbook of Methods
http://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/homtoc.htm
Subject Surveys
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Employment and Unemployment
Compensation and Working Conditions
Occupational Safety and Health
Productivity and Technical
Economic Growth and Employment Projections
Prices and Living Conditions
Contents of Each Survey Section
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Survey descriptions, definitions, and methodology
Sample survey forms
Bibliographies
BLS Surveys
Census Bureau
– Monthly household survey of employment
conducted for BLS
Bureau of Labor Statistics
– Questionnaires and visits to business establishments
– Collects data provided by states
– Does not survey individual people or households
– Frequency varies: monthly, quarterly, annually, every
few years
Not All Data Can Be Compared
Classification Systems
Standard Occupation Code
– http://www.bls.gov/soc/home.htm
(Agricultural positions are farm managers and four
types of agricultural workers)
North American Industrial Classification
System
– http://www.census.gov/epcd/naics02/
(Includes detailed types of farms)
Employment Data
Current Employment Survey
– Monthly national and state data on employment, hours
and earnings - nonfarm only
Current Population Survey
– Monthly data on characteristics of the labor force for the
nation and states, including unemployment
State and Local Unemployment
– Monthly data from states on unemployment rates in
places over 25,000
Occupational Employment Survey
– Annual data on 700 occupations and 400 industries
Current Employment Survey
Main Page
http://www.bls.gov/bls/employment.htm
BLS Handbook of Methods
– Survey used
– Forms of publication
Detailed tables
Analytical Tables Prepared by BLS
Data Collection Forms
Related Government Statistical Programs
Current Employment Survey
Access to Tables
http://www.bls.gov/bls/employment.htm
Most popular tables
Create Your Own Customized Tables
– Single and multiple screen methods
FTP Data
Pre-Tabulated Data
Special Analytical Tables Created by BLS
Current Population Survey
http://www.bls.gov/cps/home.htm
Monthly survey of households rather than
businesses
Conducted by the Census Bureau
Employment and unemployment by age, race, sex,
education, etc.
Why people dropped out of the labor force
Wages
Labor union membership,
Special Analytical Tables Created by BLS
Local Area Unemployment
http://www.bls.gov/lau/home.htm
Monthly employment and unemployment
States, counties and places of 25,000+
Data from State Unemployment Insurance
Records
Industries
http://www.bls.gov/lau/home.htm
Employer Costs (Salaries and Benefits)
Labor Productivity
Occupational Safety and Health
(responsibility of employer)
Employer Costs
http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ect/home.htm
Salary and benefits per hour for industries and occupations
Labor Productivity
http://www.bls.gov/lpc/home.htm
Output per hour worked and rate of change
over time
Available by industry
Uses several different survey programs
Safety and Health
http://www.bls.gov/iif/home.htm
Worker illnesses and fatalities
Data comes from Occupational Safety and Health
Administration Records
Fatalities by cause, demographics, and industry
Injuries by industry and days of missed work
Occupations
http://www.bls.gov/bls/occupation.htm
Wages by Occupation (400) and Industry (750) for
Nation, States, and Metropolitan Areas
– very detailed
Occupational Wages by State and Metropolitan Area
– not by industry; less detailed
Career Information
Occupational Projections
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Occupations
http://www.bls.gov/oes/home.htm
Comparison of salaries by like occupation
(e.g. computer and mathematics specialists)
Salaries of detailed occupations (.e.g
statisticians) by industry or state or
metropolitan area
Occupations
http://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm
Helps employers set wage for new jobs
Covers most metropolitan areas
Broader groups of occupations (computer and
mathematical scientists not statisticians)
Occupational Projections
http://www.bls.gov/emp/home.htm
Compare growth rate of jobs by education or
detailed occupation
Compare growth industries and occupations
within them
Occupational Outlook Handbook
http://www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm
Helps high school and college students make
career choices
Searchable or browsable
Provides
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Educational requirements
Working conditions
Salaries
Job prospects
Inflation and Expenditures
http://www.bls.gov/bls/inflation.htm
Consumer Price Index
– Inflation rate used for government economic
policies and salary increase
Producer Prices
– Inflation rate in wholesale prices
– Used as economic predictor
Consumer Expenditures
– Spending habits used for marketing
Consumer Price Index
http://www.bls.gov/cpi/home.htm
Rate of change in cost of
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Food
Shelter
Clothes
Transportation
Medical care
Recreation
Collected monthly from 87 urban
areas
Consumer Expenditures
http://www.bls.gov/cex/home.htm
Annual amount spent on individual
products by household
characteristics
Total amount spent on all products by
household characteristics
Printed Publications
http://www.bls.gov/opub/home.htm
BLS Handbook of Methods
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Occupational Outlook Quarterly
Monthly Bulletin of Labor Statistics
Technical Articles
BLS Index
http://www.bls.gov/
A-Z Index for Browsing
Search Engine for Entire Web Site
Census Bureau Programs
http://www.census.gov/
Census of Population and Housing (10 years)
American Community Survey (annual)
Current Population Survey (monthly)
Economic Census (5 years)
Census of Agriculture(5 years)
County Business Patterns (annual)
Trade Statistics (monthly)
Census Bureau Programs
http://www.census.gov/
Census of Population and Housing
Taken every 10 years
Data to small geographic areas (8 blocks)
Labor force status
Occupation
Industry
Income and poverty
Transportation to work
Census Bureau Programs
http://www.census.gov/
Decennial Census
http://factfinder.census.gov/
Decennial Census
http://factfinder.census.gov/
Decennial Census
http://www.census.gov/eeo2000/index.html
•Occupation by sex and race for places
of 50,000+
•Educational attainment by age, race and
sex for places of 50,000+
•For affirmative action hiring
Decennial Census
http://www.census.gov/eeo2000/index.html
Current Population Survey
http://www.census.gov/
Use A-Z Index to Access Most Subjects
County Business Patterns
http://www.census.gov/epcd/cbp/view/cbpview.html
Employment and payrolls by detailed
industry
States, counties, metropolitan areas, and zip
code
Collected annually
Census of Agriculture
http://www.nass.usda.gov/census/
National Center for Education
Statistics
http://www.nces.ed.gov/
Directories of schools and school districts with
enrollment by race
Enrollment, teachers, and school funding for all
education levels by state
National educational test results
Outcomes of education (salaries by education level)
Special studies on parental involvement, teacher
unions, financial aid, early childhood education
National Center for Education
Statistics
http://www.nces.ed.gov/
Finding U.S. Government Statistics
No single search engine for all variables
Alternatives
– FedStats <http://www.fedstats.gov/>
– Textual search engines
• http://www.google.com/unclesam
• http://www.firstgov.gov/
– List of Government Agencies in
http://www.firstgov.gov
Fedstats
http://www.fedstats.gov/
FirstGov
http://www.firstgov.gov/