PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL ILO Decent Work Team and Office for the Caribbean May 2014, Grenada Development of Labour Force Surveys in the Caribbean: Recent Issues " Development of Labour Force Surveys in the Caribbean: Recent Issues

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL What we will discuss LFS in the Caribbean Reviews/revisions and issues Developments in the OECS region Use of the LFS results 19 th ICLS decisions: implications What is next

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL Reviews/revisions and issues Overview: CLMIS (ILO & US-DOL/BLS) ILO selected NSOs: Other reviews and revisions Integration of IT Sampling

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL reviews and revisions Enhancement of Questionnaire design Review/revision of Sampling Two “approaches”  ILO & BLS

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL LFS Plus Housing info Migration Poverty measurement Challenges Applying the 19 th ICLS resolution What is the limit

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL Use of the LFS results Employment/labour market analysis National Accounts/Productivity Social policy Macro-economic policy

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 19 th ICLS decisions: implications Objective: Revised framework 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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)

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL In Summary

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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)

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL

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

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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”

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL 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?

PROMOTING DECENT WORK FOR ALL Decent Work Thank you! The International Labour Organization ILO Decent Work Team and Country Office for the Caribbean