Census of Public Sector and Corporation Sector Employment - 1985

The Census of Public and Corporation Sector Employment is the fifth in the series. Earlier, Census of Public Sector Employment was conducted only by the Ministry of Public Administration in the years 1968, 1972 and 1976 with the technical assistance and staff by the Department of Census and Statistics.

In 1980 this department undertook and carried out the Census in both sectors, namely Public and Corporation Sector for the first time. This Census is the second in this series covering both Public and Corporation Sectors. In 1980 Census, the coverage was about 78 percent due to the island-wide strike.

With the idea of obtaining complete coverage, a listing operation was carried out during March 1985. A list of all institutions coming under each Ministry was prepared with the estimated number of employees in each of these institutions ie. in each Ministry, Department, Corporation, Authority, Board, Institution and Government Owned Business Undertaking. The estimated number employed in each of them as permanent, temporary and casual employees were also listed.

When we look at the 1981 Census of Population figures classified by status of employment 519,967 persons reported that they are Government employees and another 834,217 persons reported that they are semi-government employees giving a total of 1,354,184 persons in both these sectors, as compared to 728,976 persons covered at this census. This difference is mainly because at the 1985 census wage earners in the Estate Sector are not counted. The workers in Tea, Rubber and Coconut plantation may have reported at the 1981 Census of Population as government or semi-government employees. This may be one of the reason for the difference between the two sets of figures.

At first all the secretaries of the Ministries were requested to appoint an officer in the Ministry to liaise this census work with the Department of Census and Statistics and the Institutions coming under his Ministry. Also these officers provided this department with the list of institutions coming under the Ministry with the estimated number of employees in each of them.

A list of all Institutions to be covered at this Census of Public and Corporation Sector Employment - 1985 by Ministries was prepared. It is observed that under the, 46 Ministries, there are 130 departments 46 corporations and 143 boards, institutions and other government owned business undertakings. Excluded in this census are
all institutions that have covered by the Companies Ordinance.

At the beginning of the year 1985. when the planning for the census was in progress, all these institutions provided the total number of employees at work in each of them. This gave an estimate of 447637 employees in the 46 Ministries and the 130 Departments coming under them . In the corporation sector estimated figure of 332,415 employees were distributed among the corporation and other state owned bodies. The total number of employees to be covered was estimated at 780,052. Finally in the actual count, the enumerated number was 406,359 or 90.8% of the number of government employees reported earlier and also enumerated 322,617 or 97.1 percent of the number of employees reported in the corporation sector. The overall number enumerated was 728,976 or 93. 5 percent of the estimated number. Also much reliance should not be placed on the total number of employees estimated earlier and reported by the individual institutions, which in many instants gave the budget estimates figures of employment. In many departments and corporations which employ casual hands seasonally the estimates provided provided were always on the higher side.

Also the larger departments which have branches all over the country and field officers distributed in remote areas had difficulties in reporting the number correctly and in many cases gave an approximate estimate. That may be one of the reasons for an undercount of 9.5 percent in the public sector and about 3 percent in the corporation sector. This is clearly seen from the 90 percent coverage in the Ministry of Education which employs more than a third of public sector employment and also Department of Railways which have reported only 80 percent of the employees. Further some, institutions would have given the estimates as provided in the cadre for 1985 in which most of them would not have been filled by the census date. If not for some of the institutions providing a higher estimate of employees, the enumerated figures should be more or less closer to the actual number of employees in service as on the date of the Census.