CELEX: 51978PC0642
Language: en
Date: 1978-11-27
Title: Draft COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) on the organization of a Labour force sample survey in the spring of 1979 (submitted by the Commission to the Council)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (78) 642
Vol. 1978/0248
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 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                COM(78)642 final
                                                Brussels . 27 November 1978
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                                  Draft
                                       ^
                        COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC )
      on the organization of a Labour force sample survey in the
                            spring of 1979
                ( submitted by the Commission to the Council )
C0M(78 ) 642 final
 ---pagebreak---                            EXPLANATORY MEMORMOTM
 . Taking into account the wish of the Member States to set up at Community level
    a system of surveys and statistical studies with a view to improving the' inform­
    ation available on the structure and short-term trends of labour markets , the
    Commission forwarded to the Council in October 1975 a communication on the
    Programme of Employment Statistics (1 ).                                        .. _
    The Council took formal note of this Programme on 19 July 1976 , approving its
     main outlines and reaffirming the importance of its effective implementation.
2 , The labour force sample survey is a crucial part of this programmes it, is
     designed to enable the structure and current trends of employment and unemploy­
     ment to be recorded at regular intervals. Since it is carried out among housfe-
     holdo , it is the most suitable instrument for providing a link between the
     general population censuses which take place only every 10 years®
     In the context of the information required by the Community for its action
     programmes , the labour force Baraple survey is at present one of the few
     statistical sources providing data which are compiled applying uniform
     methods and based on common definitions . Since the results it contains
     illustrate - different aspects of the problems of employment and 'unemployment ,
     it provides the statistical information which is needed for social , economic ,
     regional , industrial and agricultural poliqy and for the policy on education
     and the environment#               ""
 3 . The Programme of Employment Statistics provi4es for the holding of these
      labour force sample surveys eveiy two years® -                     •
     Pursuant to Council Regulations , the latest surveys were carried out in 1973 ,
      1975 and 1977 (2 ). Thus the next survey is due to be held in spring 1979 *
 4 . The results of the labour force sample surveys enable an analysis to be made
      for the Community , for each Member State , and at certain regional levels ,
      of the following :
      ( 1 ) Doc. 0014(75 ) 485 final
      (2 ) 1973 : Council Regulation (EEC)2723/72 of 19 December 1 972
            1975 : Council Regulation (EEC)2640/74 of 15 October 1 974
            1 977 * Council Regulation (EE0)2874/76 of 23 November 1 976
 ---pagebreak---                                           - 2 -
          a ) the structure of the population in terms of the main criteria relating to
              activity ( persons with an occupation, unemployed persons , non-active persons )}
         b ) the structure of employment in terns of individual characteristics ( sex , age ,
              marital Btatus , etc) and occupational characteristics ( status , sector , branch ,
              etc ) ;
         c) the structure of hours worked per week ;         ?
         d ) the structure of unemployment and of other persons seeking employment in terms
             of individual characteristics , taking1 account of the type of work sought , the
             reasons for seeking employment , the duration and method of search .
        Account is also taken of certain specific aspects of the activity which are not
       -brought out by other statistics . In particular, this involves the different types
       of activity ( full time/part-time , occasional or supplementary activities , second
       activity ), and regional and/or occupational mobility.
      In consultation with the experts of the nine Member States , it has been decided
      that the basio survey dexcribed above will be repeated in 1979 without major
      change compared with previous surveys .
                                                                      /
h . Tne Programme of Employment Statistics also envisages the possibility
     introducing into the labour force sample surveys supplementary questions on
     problems directly related to employment .        -
     The first special survey of this type , on general education and vocational
     training, was carried out in 1973 * Amongst other things , the results of this
      Burvey have enabled a preliminary study to be made of the relationship between
      occupation and training.                           .
      In 1975 supplementary questions were asked on working conditions . This has
      allowed a more thorough analysis to be carried out at Community level of the
      problems of night work , Sunday working and shift work. Some very useful inform­
      ation on the distance between home and the place of work has also been collected.
      For the most recent survey , that of 1 977 » "the following two subjects were chosen :
       determination of the work potential among persons not economically active and
        pensions . .                                       >
  7 . In view of the increasing difficulty of integrating a large number of persons ,
    • particularly young people , into working life , the supplementary survey for 1979
        will deal with relationship between employmeni and training. In their search for
 ---pagebreak---                                        - 3 -
     solutions to these problems , both the Member States and the Commission require
     more precise information about the current situation® However the statistics which
     are collected at present provide very limited answers to these questions , since
     the administrative statistics relating to employment and to education provide
     little basis for studying the relationship between training and the opportunities
     for entering working life.
     The fact that these statistics need to be improved was emphasized by the Ministers
     of Education at their meeting of 13 December 1976 and confirmed, inter alia, by
     the Tripartite Conference in Luxembourg on 27. June 1977 »               ,
     The experts of the nine Member States have agreed that this subject should be
     choBen,                                              1        .  »           ;
8 . 'i' re i"ollowing matters will be investigated with the aid of a special questionnaire
     a) education and training in progress at the time of the survey |
     o ) initial school and university studies completed !        .
   . c ) the transition from initial school or university studies to working life ;-
     d ) the most recent post-school training completed*
     The data on education and training 'in progress at. the time of the survey will
     jf'late to al'l persons aged 14 to 44 years , while the questions on education and
     training completed and on the transition to working life will be Confined to 1
     persons aged 14 to 44 years who are employed or are seeking employment#
     Education and training will be described in terms both of its technical aspects
     and of its relationship to individual circumstances.
     A comparison of individual data from the basic survey with data from the speoial
                                                        «
     r.urvey will produce a large amount of statistical, information with which to
     analyze the transition to working life* Simultaneous processing of 'data from the
     two surveys is also the most suitable and most economical ^method by which to
     obtain this type of informations                       ■ . -
9» Aa laid down in article 9 of the Draft Regulation, the Member States will receive
     for the conduct of this survey a flat-rate sum proportional to the ^number of
     households questionedc This amount will be covered by the budget of the European
      Communities (arta 264)« On the basis of the sums allocated for earlier surveys
      and taking account of the imaiber of households , the msCiiimuffi cost of thfe financial
      support to the nine Sembar States is estimated ic be 2 000 000 2?JA, which' corres­
      pond a to a flat-rate .subsidy per household of 3^3 2XJA*                        1
 ---pagebreak---                                  Draft
                         COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC )
            on the organization of a labour force sample survey
                          in the spring of 1979
  THE COUNCIL OP THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,
 Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community , and
  in particular Article 213 thereof ,
 Having regard to the draft Regulation submitted by the Confmission,
 Whereas, in order to carry out the tasks which are assigned to it by the Treaty ,
 in particular in Articles 2 , 117 ,, 118 , 122 and 123 thereof , the Commission must
know the situation and the developments in employment and unemployment }
Whereas the statistical information available in each of the Member States does
not provide a suitable basis for comparison, particularly because of the dif-P"~
ences between the laws , rules and administrative practices of                  States
on which these statistics are based }
Whereaaf by reason of the considerable changes which take place in the field of
employment and unemployment , it appears necessary to make available at regular
intervale statistics permitting proper comparisons between Member States ;
Whereas the best method of knowing the level and the structure of employment and
unemployment consists in carrying out harmonized and synchronized Community sample
surveys of labour forces ; whereas only the renewal in 1979 of the surveys already
carried out in 1968 , 1969 , 1970 , 1971 , 1971 t 1973 * 1975 and 1977 enables this
information to be obtained ;
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION s
                                Article 1
 In the spring of 1979 "the Commission shall undertake a labour force survey
 based on a sample of households in each of the Member States.
 ---pagebreak---                                    mm 2 –
                                Article 2
This survey shall Id© carrisd out in          of "til© Hembsr S*t&"t€s in s Bfljsplfi of
households whose residence is in the territory of these States at the time of
the survey. The information shall be collected for each member of the households
included in the sample ,                                                              '
                                Article 3
The sample shall comprise between 60 000 and 100 00Q households each In the Federal
Republic of Germany, Prance , Italy and the United Kingdom ; between 30 000 and
50 000 each in Belgium , the Netherlands and Ireland ; between 30 000 and 40 000 in
                                                                                        .1
Denmark , and approximately 10 000 households in Luxembourg.
                                Article 4
The basic survey Bhall cover :                                . • '
a) the individual characteristics of all members - of the households questioned ;
b ) the occupations of these persons ( status , branch of activity , hours of work ,
  . etc.) at the time of the survey and one year prior to it ;                             /
c ) the search for work , taking into account the type of employment Bought , reasons
     for seeking it , and the length of time spent seeking it#
               v                Article 5
A supplementary Burvey dealing with the relationship between employment and
training shall be conducted as part of the 1979 labour force sample survey.
Questions shall be asked on :
A. the education and training currently being received by persons aged 14 to 44
    years ;
b . the process , of integration into working life for persons aged 14 to 44 years
    who are in employment or are seeking employment , with details of
        a) the school and university studies they have completed , .
        b ) the transition from initial school and university studies to working
            life ,          '
        c) the most recent post-school training completed.
r ducat ion and/or training shall be described both in terms of its technical
anpects ( type f duration, etc.) and in terms of individual circumstances
 ( objectives , financial assistance , etce )o
                                                        i
 ---pagebreak---                                    Article 6
The information shall be gathered by the statistical authorities of the Member
states on the basis of a list of questions drawn up by the Commission in co­
operation with the said authorities©
The Commission shall determine , in collaboration with these authorities , the
technical details of the survey ( basic survey and supplementary survey ),,  It
shall also establish , under the same conditions , the starting and closing dates
of the survey and the deadlines for answers to the questionnaires®
                                  Article 7
The statistical authorities of the Member States shall check the answers
collectedo They shall forward to the Commission the results of the survey for
each respondent , who Bhall remain anonymous .
                                  Article 8
The individual items of information provided in the course     of the survey may
bo used only for statistical purposes e They may not be used for fiscal or other
purposes and may not be communicated to third parties e
Member States shall take appropriate measures ;
a) to ensure that the information requested is furnished truthfully and in its
    entirety within the times specified ;
b ) to punish any infringement of the obligation under the first paragraph to    •
    preserve the confidentiality of the information aathered .
                                  Article 9
For the conduct of this survey , Member States shall receive a flat-rate sum
                                                «
proportional to the number of households surveyed .    This ajuount shall be set
off against the credits provided for this purpose in the budget of the European
Communities .
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all
Member States *
Done at                    ,
                                          For the Council
                                           The President