Vinnumarkaður - 01.06.1995, Page 28

26
Synopsis of methods and concepts
hours in the reference week for economic reasons and was
seeking a new job or a second job he or she is considered
underemployed. A person is also classified as underem-
ployed if he or she has a part-time job and wants to have a
full-time job and his or her actual hours worked in all jobs are
under 40 hours.
Status in employment. Four status categories are used in
the labour force survey: Employees, own-account workers,
employers and unpaid family workers. In this report all self-
employed are classified together. Employees are persons in
employment who identify themselves as employees or as
“sub-contracting” employees as well as those unemployed
persons who are seeking employment as employees and
have not looked for permits, licences, financial assistance,
premises or equipment in order to set up own business.
Labour force participation. The following interpreta-
tion of the ILO definition of labour force status is used in the
Labour Force Survey:
Employment. All gainful employment including unpaid
work at family enterprise, unpaid work with the construc-
tion of own house or for the production of own consumption.
Also creation of works of art, even if the persons has not yet
received any payment. Maintaining own household is not
considered gainful employment.
Unemployment. Persons are classified as unemployed if
they did not have gainful employment in the reference week
and satisfy at least one of the following criteria:
1. Have actively been seeking work during the previous
four weeks and are able to start working within two
weeks. No distinction is made between active and
passive methods of job search.
2. Have already found a job which begins later.
3. Are on temporary layoff.
4. Have given up seeking work but can start working
within two weeks of finding a job.
Students are only considered employed if they are seeking
a job with their studies or a permanent job and are available
for work within two weeks.
Employed. Persons are classified as employed if they
worked one hour or more in the reference week or were
temporarily absent from their work during that week. Per-
sons on matemity or paternity leave do not have to retum to
their previous job.
Inactive persons. Persons are classified as inactive if they
are neither employed nor unemployed according the criteria
above.
The labour force consists of employed and unemployed
persons.
Residence. Information on residence is taken from the
National Register and updated at the time of the survey with
information from contact efforts. The following regional
division is used (see Appendix 2).
The capital regioti consists of following municipalities:
Reykjavík, Seltjarnarnes, Hafnarfjörður, Bessastaða-
hreppur, Garðabær, Kópavogur. Mosfellsbær, Kjalames-
hreppur and Kjósarhreppur.
The following municipalities or urban areas are classified
as towns outside the capital region, usually with more than
1,000 inhabitants:
Keflavík, Grindavík, Sandgerði, Njarðvík, Akranes,
Borgames, Stykkishólmur, Olafsvík, Isafjörður, Bolungar-
vík, Blönduós, Sauðárkrókur, Siglufjörður, Akureyri, Dalvík,
Ólafsfjörður, Húsavík, Egilsstaðir, Seyðisfjörður, Eski-
fjörður, Neskaupstaður, Höfn í Homafirði, Selfoss, Hvera-
gerði and Vestmannaeyjar.
Municipalities other than the above are classified as other
municipalities.
Marital status. Classification of marital status is as
reported. Correction is made when reported marital status is
logically incompatible with information from the National
Register, e.g., when a respondent reports him or herself as
married without being recorded as married in the National
Register, that person would be classified as cohabiting.
Educatíon. Primary education is classified in ISCED
groups 1-2. Vocational education, such as apprenticeship in
crafts, as well as 1 to 3-year general education after primary
education is classified in ISCED group 3. Higher vocational
training and university entrance examination (generally
completed at 19-20 years of age) is classified in ISCED
group 5. University education and equivalent education is
classified in ISCED groups 6-7.
Students. A respondent is classified as a student if he or
she attended day school within the four week period prior to
the survey, received vocational training during the same
period or reported that he or she was a student having a part-
time job.
Length of servíce. Length of service refers to the time
from the starting date at the respective firm/establishment to
the reference month. Non-responses were imputed using
two methods. Firstly, the starting month was randomly
assigned, assuming the average distribution of starting
months among valid answers 1991-1994. Secondly, the
starting year was estimated by multiple regression using the
variables age, sex and economic activity. No one was,
however, allowed to have begun working before the age of
10.
Labour organization. A labour organization is an inter-
est organization of employees with a statutory right to enter
into labour contracts. The respondents themselves define
whether or not they are members of such an organization and
which one. If they are members of more than one labour
organization, only the union related to their first job is
recorded.
Occupation. Occupation of first job and last job is coded
according ISCO-88, as adapted to Icelandic conditions. All
cases are coded at unit group level, but reported at major
group level.
Full-time/part-time employment. A person is full-time
employed if he or she usually works 35 or more hours per
week. Part-time employment is 1-34 usual hours of work per
week.
Hours of work. Calculation of average number of actual
hours worked is made only for those employed persons who
worked one hour or more in the reference week in either their
first job or second job. Missing data have been imputed by
multiple regression analysis, using sex, full-time/part-time
employment and occupation as independent variables.