Labor Force Survey 2016
Philippines, 2016
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PHL_2016_LFS-APR_v01_M
Labor Force Survey 2016
April
| Name | Country code |
|---|---|
| Philippines | PHL |
Labor Force Survey [hh/lfs]
The Labor Force Survey (LFS) is a nationwide quarterly survey of households conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) to gather data on the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the population.
Starting July 1987, the LFS used a new questionnaire design and adopted modifications in the concepts and definitions for measuring labor force and employment characteristics. The design was based on a past week reference period and the new concept on “availability and looking for work” was adopted.
Starting July 1996, the LFS used the new sampling design constructed from the listings of the 1995 Census of Population. The number of households increased from 26,000 to an expanded sample of about 41,000 households.
The questionnaire was revised in January 2001 with the inclusion of questions on salaries and wages, new entrants, and other occupations, among others. It was further revised in January 2002 with the inclusion of the line number of respondent and a screening question, whether the household member has another job or business during the past week.
Starting July 2003, the LFS used the 2003 Master Sample (MS) constructed from the Enumeration Area Reference File (EARF) of the 2000 Census of Population and Housing (CPH). The number of sample households increased from 41,000 to about 51,000 households nationwide which was deemed sufficient to provide more precise and reliable estimates at the regional level.
Starting April 2005, the new unemployment definition has been adopted in accordance with the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) Resolution No. 15 dated October 20, 2004. As indicated in the said resolution, the unemployed include all persons who are 15 years and over as of their last birthday and are reported as:
(1) without work and currently available for work and seeking work; or
(2) without work and currently available for work but not seeking work for the following reasons:
Tired or believed no work available
Awaiting results of previous job application
Temporary illness or disability
Bad weather
Waiting for rehire or job recall
Starting January 2012, there was a revision made to the questionnaire with the inclusion of question on technical/vocational education and training (TVET). Also, there were changes on the codes for the interview status and highest grade completed. Also, in this round, the LFS adopted the 2009 four-digit Philippine Standard Industrial Classification (PSIC) codes in classifying the industry. Prior to this, the 1994 PSIC was used.
Question on hunger experienced by any member of the household and the frequency of experiencing it, was included in the questionnaire starting July 2012. The question, "During the past three months, did any member of your family experience hunger because you did not have money to buy food?" was used from July 2012 to April 2013 LFS rounds. In July 2013 round, the question was revised to "During the past three months, did any member of your family experience hunger because you did not have food to eat?"
Starting April 2016, the 2013 Master Sample Design was used. Also, the 2012 four-digit Philippine Standard Occupational Classification (PSOC) code was used.
The LFS April 2016 was the 168th series of surveys on labor statistics that started in 1956.
The Labor Force Survey (LFS) is a nationwide survey of households conducted quarterly to gather data on the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the population. It is primarily geared towards the estimation of the levels of employment and unemployment in the country. One of the objectives of the Labor Force Survey is to provide a quantitative framework for the preparation of plans and formulation of policies affecting the labor market. Specifically, the survey is designed to provide statistics on levels and trends of employment, unemployment and underemployment of the country, as a whole, and for the 17 administrative regions.
A total national sample of 42,768 sample housholds (rounds with Batanes sample) or 42,576 sample households (rounds without Batanes sample) will be alloted per survey round deemed sufficient to provide more precise and reliable estimates at the national and regional levels only.
The survey involves the collection of data on demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the population in general. The reporting unit is the household which means that statistics emanating from this survey refers to the characteristics of the population residing in private households. Persons who belongs to the institutional population are not within the scope of the survey.
Sample survey data [ssd]
Individual or Person
Persons 15 years old and over
Version
V.3 PUF
2016-12
Starting April 2016 LFS round the 2013 Master Sample Design (MS) was used.
Scope
The scope of the LFS includes:
· Demographic Characteristics: household membership, relationship to the household head, sex, age, marital status, highest grade completed and also includes Overseas worker indicator.
· Economic Characteristics: employment status, industry group, class of worker, nature of employment, hours worked, availability for work, job search method.
| Topic | Vocabulary |
|---|---|
| Labour | Philippine Statistics Authority |
| Sectoral statistics | Philippine Statistics Authority |
| Household surveys | Philippine Statistics Authority |
Coverage
The sample was selected to allow separate estimates for the national level, and regional levels only (17 administrative regions).
National Capital Region (NCR)
Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR)
Region I - Ilocos Region
Region II - Cagayan Valley
Region III - Central Luzon
Region IV-A - CALABARZON
Region IV-B - MIMAROPA
Region V - Bicol Region
Region VI - Western Visayas
Region VII - Central Visayas
Region VIII - Eastern Visayas
Region IX - Zamboanga Peninsula
Region X - Northern Mindanao
Region XI - Davao Region
Region XII - SOCCSKSARGEN
Caraga
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)
The survey covered all household members of the sample households.
Considered as members of a household are:
a. Persons who are present at the time of visit, whose usual place of residence is the sample household regardless of their length of stay in the household;
b. Persons who are present at the time of visit, whose usual place of residence is outside the sample household but have stayed temporarily with the sample household, for at least 30 days;
c. Persons who are present at the time of visit, whose usual place of residence is outside the sample household but have stayed with the sample household even for less than 30 days, provided that they have been away from their usual place of residence for 30 days or more;
d. Persons who are not present at the time of visit, but are expected to return within 30 days from date of departure to their usual place of residence, which is the sample household; and
e. The following family members who are away at the time of visit:
1 . Overseas contract workers (OCWs);
2. Other overseas Filipino workers who have been away for not more than five years from the date of departure, and are expected to be back within five years from the date of last departure;
3. Employees in Philippine embassies, consulates and other missions; and
4. Students abroad/tourists who have been away for one year or less and are expected to be back within a year from the date of departure. This category also includes those attending training abroad, medical treatment and missionaries.Producers and sponsors
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) | National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) |
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Government of the Philippines | Full funding |
Sampling
The 2013 Master Sample for household-based survey:
In order to be more effecient in the conduct of household based-surveys, the PSA designed a master sample consists of randomly assigned and selected set of geographic areas with non-overlapping and discernable boundaries known as the primary sampling units (PSUs). The primary sampling unit (PSU) can be (1) the whole barangay, or (2) a portion of a large barangay, or (3) combinations of small barangays.
Provinces and Highly Urbanized Ciities as Sampling Domain
To provide sub-national or provincial level statistics with precise estimates the 2013 MS has 117 major domains as follows: 81 provinces (including the newly created province Davao Occidental); 33 highly urbanized cities (HUC) (including 16 citiies in the National Capital Region; and 3 other areas (Pateros, Isabela City, and Cotabato City).
Primary Sampling Units
In the 2013 MS design each sampling diomain(i.e., province/HUC is divided into exhaustive and non-overlapping area segments known as Primary Sampling Units (PSUs) with about 100 to 400 households. Thus, a PSU can be a barangay/Enumeration Area (EA) or a portion of a large barangay or two or more adjacent small barangays/EAs. The PSUs are then ordered according to the following: (1) North-South/West-East Geographic location; (2)decreasing proporion of households with overseas workers; and (3) decreasing wealth index.
Replicates
From the ordered list of PSUs, all possible systematic samples of 6 PSUs will be drawn to form a replicate for the most of the province domain i.e., 75 out of 81 provinces while all possible systemmatic sample of 8 PSUs will be drawn to form a replicate for most of the HUCs, i.e., 31 of 33 HUCs. Small province domains such as Guimaras, Siquijor, Camiguin, Apayao, and Dinagat Isalnds will have 3 PSUs per replicate. Batanes with very less PSUs formed will have 3 PSUs per replicate but will be covered twice a year only (i.e., January and July rounds only). For other HUCs, San Juan City and Lucena City will have 3 and 5 PSUs per replicate, while the other urban areas, Pateros, and City of Isabela will also have 3 PSUs per replicate while Cotabato City will be allocated with 5 PSUs per replicate.
For instance, in Cagayan with 1008 PSUs formed, a total 1008/6 = 168 possible systematic samples of size 6 or 168 R groups or replicates can be made. The 168 replicates formed are then sorted at random so that the first 4 replicates will be in the first round, next 4 in the second round, and so on.
Sample Allocation Scheme
For each domain, a total of 4 sample replicates will be allotted for each survey round. However, the total number of sample SSUs will be alloted proportionately to the measure of size of the PSU. Thus, a PSU with only 100 households would have less number of samples households than PSUs with 400 households but on the average there will be 12 sample households allotted for each PSU in HUCs and an average of 16 sample households alloted for every PSUs in province domains.
A total national sample of 42,768 sample households (rounds with Batanes sample) or 42,576 sample households (rounds without Batanes sample) will be allotted per survey round.
The response rates for LFS April 2016 round is 95.7% . The response rate is the ratio of the total responding households to the total number of eligible households. Eligible households include those who were completely interviewed, refused to be interviewed or were temporarily away or not at home or on vacation during the survey round.
"Please refer to webpage of the 2013 Master Sample Design"
Survey instrument
ISH FORM 2 (LFS questionnaire) is a four-page, forty three-column questionnaire that is being used in the quarterly rounds of the Labor Force Survey nationwide. This questionnaire gathers data on the demographic and economic characteristics of the population.
On the first page of the questionnaire, the particulars about the geographic location, design codes and household auxiliary information of the sample household that is being interviewed are to be recorded. Certifications by the enumerator and his supervisor regarding the manner by which the data are collected are likewise to be made on this page.
The inside pages of the questionnaire contain the items to be determined about each member of the sample household. Columns 2 to 10 are for the demographic characteristics; columns 2 to 5A are to be ascertained of all members of the household regardless of age. Columns 6 to 7 are asked for members 5 years old and over, while column 8 is asked for members 5 to 24 years old, column 9 to 10, for 15 years old and over, while columns 11 to 15 are asked for members 5 years old and over. Columns 18 to 42 on the other hand, are the series of items that will be asked of all the members 15 years old and over to determine their labor force and employment characteristics.
Other Relevant Information:
The question on hunger experienced by any member of the family because they did not have food to eat, was asked to the head of the household. If in question A, the answer is Yes the frequency of experiencing hunger was asked in question B.
Most of the questions have pre-coded responses. The possible answers with their corresponding codes are printed at the bottom of the page for easy reference. Only the appropriate codes need to be entered in the cells.
Other items, however, require write-in entries such as column 14 (primary occupation) and column 16 (kind of business/industry), etc. For such items, it is required that the enumerator describes the primary occupation or kind of business/industry.
The ISH Form 2 is provided as Technical Documents.
Data collection
| Start | End |
|---|---|
| 2016-04-08 | 2016-04-30 |
| Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Income and Employment Statistics Division | Philippine Statistics Authority |
Supervision
The Regional Directors (RDs) and Provincial Statistics Officers (PSOs) had supervised during the field operation. They were provided seven mandays each for supervision inclusive of travel time. The Regional Statistician or his/her designated alternate who served as Regional Focal Person for the LFS April 2016 have seven days of supervision inclusive of travel time. He/She is expected to supervise during the first two weeks of data collection in order that he/she be able to immediately correct any error, and provides solution to problems encountered by nterviewers.
The RD, PSO and Regional Statistician (Regional Focal person) coordinated with each other in planning their field supervision so that they will not supervise the same sample EAs. While in the sample areas, the RDs, PSOs, Regional Statistician or his/her designated alternate serving as the Regional Focal Person carried out the following:
-
observation of interviews to ensure that these are properly carried out; - scrutiny of accomplished questionnaires to ascertain completeness and consistency of entries; and
- discussion with the interviewer of the errors committed during the interview and in filling out the questionnaire,
and of corrections to be made.
The Provincial Supervisor (PS) had closely supervised the SRs throughout the whole duration of the survey. He/she kept the PSO informed of the progress of the fieldwork. He/she planned an efficient schedule of fieldwork such that he/she is able to observe the conduct of interview of all interviewers during the first 10 days of data collection. This was to ensure that errors committed by interviewers were immediately corrected; hence errors was not repeated in succeeding interviews. As PS, he/she had to see to it
that the necessary preparation before the fieldwork was done, and that expected tasks during and after the fieldwork are properly carried out. His/her responsibilities include the following:
a. attended the provincial briefing;
b. prepared the work plan and strategies for field work and discussed these with the PSO;
c. planned an efficient schedule for his/her fieldwork ensuring that he/she was able to observe the interview, and review
the accomplished questionnaires of all the interviewers within the first 10 days of data collection;
d. while in the sample area, carefully scrutinized and edited questionnaires and discussed with the interviewers the errors
observed in the accomplished questionnaires and the corresponding corrections;
e. observed interviewers and discusses with them any error committed in asking questions or in recording responses
in the questionnaire, and the corresponding solutions to correct these errors;
f. reported to the PSO the status regarding the fieldwork and problems that needs action or solution by the PSO;
g. collected questionnaires from a completed EA and transmits these to the PO; and
h. prepared narrative report on the conduct of the LFS in his/her province.
The Assistant Provincial Supervisor (APS) also carried out the fieldwork for the whole duration of the survey. He/she assisted the PS in the editing of the questionnaires while in the sample area. He/she assisted the PS to carry out a 100 percent review
of the accomplished forms. The PS and the APS recorded all observed errors in the questionnaires using the 2013 LFS/APIS Form 3 - Field Editing Form.
Observed errors during interview was recorded using the Supervisor's Observation Form. Spot checking and conduct of re-interview, the strategies for identifying interviewers who violate survey protocols, was conducted if the need arises.
The information in the Field Editing Form and in the Observation Form that the PSO, Provincial Supervisor, and Assistant Provincial Supervisor had recorded was summarized by the Provincial Supervisor or the Assistant Provincial Supervisor, and was submitted to the HSD thru email address iesd.staff@census.gov.ph mailto:iesd.staff@census.gov.ph, on or before 15 days after the enumeration. The Regional Focal Person prepared a similar summary report using the information in the Field Editing Form and Observation Form he/she and the RD had recorded, and submitted it thru e-mail at iesd.staff@psa.gov.ph on or before one month after the enumeration.
An evaluation of the updated MS Form 6 for various surveys submitted to the CO reveals that the number of sample vacant housing units (VHU), and sample households who had permanently moved out of the sample housing unit at the time of interview, had been increasing. While in the sample area, the PSO, Regional Focal Person, and Provincial Supervisor and Assistant Provincial Supervisor had to check the veracity of these cases. Any important finding of such field verification was included in their narrative report. The duties and responsibilities of each supervisor are discussed in the EN's manual.
Training:
There were three levels of training:
The first level involves the training of task force members conducted at the Central Office participated by selected central office personnel, selected regional or provincial staff.
The second level training was held at the Regional Offices participated by the Provincial Statistical Officers, Regional Statisticians, and Provincial Statisticians. Regional or provincial staff who attended the Task Force Training will act as trainers during the second level training.
The third level training was held at the Provincial Offices participated by the District Statistics Officers, Statistical coordination Officers and hired Statistical Researchers. The provincial staff who attended the second level training will act as trainers in this level of training.
Enumeration:
The enumeration period started on the second week up to the end of the survey month including Saturdays. The total mandays given to each enumerator to complete his/her workload will depend on the assigned sample areas but must not go beyond 21 days.
All households from the sample barangays/EAs had been administered with the LFS questionnaire (ISH Form 2) with an output of six to eight households per day.
A courtesy call to the head of the Barangay were done to inform that there is an on-going survey in their area.
A detailed instructions on how to deal with problems encountered during enumeration is included as Technical Documents.
Data processing
Data Processing
Verification and review of questionnaires
The SRs were expected to have verified the completeness of the questionnaires, correctness of the entries, consistency of the entries in the different related items, and the correctness of the codes that were entered in the boxes before the questionnaires were submitted to the Assistant Provincial Supervisor or the Provincial Supervisor. Use the list of sample barangays/EAs provided for coding the region, provinces, municipalities and barangays.
The Assistant Provincial Supervisor or the Provincial Supervisor. upon receipt of the questionnaires reviewed the forms and code the responses for occupation and kind of industry. The Provincial Staff (who attended the 2nd level training) helped in the coding of the responses for occupation and industry. The four-digit code of 2009 Philippine Standard Industrial Classification codes and 2012 Philippine Standard Occupational Classification codes was used in coding the write-in entries of industry and occupation respectively..
SRs assigned at the provincial capitals submitted the accomplished questionnaires to the Provincial Office as soon as a sample barangay was completely enumerated and reviewed. This was to enable the Provincial Staff to start the manual processing of the questionnaires even at a time when the enumeration was still going on.
A general review of the questionnaires was done at the provincial offices. The Provincial Staff made sure that each sample households in the LFS had the corresponding ISH Form 2.
Manual Processing
Manual processing is done at the Provincial Office (PO) to ensure that the questionnaires are free of errors before these were submitted for data entry. This is the general review of the questionnaires. This process includes the folioing of the questionnaires, completeness and consistency checking of the responses, editing and coding of responses. All incomplete, inconsistent, and unreasonable entries found in the questionnaires during the manual processing will be verified in the field and rectified.
Part of the manual processing activity at the PO is checking the consistency of information written in the LFS questionnaire and in the updated MS Form 6. Careful manual matching of geographic and household identification (ID) codes, name of the household head, address of the housing unit, and the final result of interview of the household in the LFS questionnaire and in MS Form 6 was carried out.
Machine Processing
Data encoding of the LFS questionnaires shall be done at the POs. The name of the household head, specific vocational/technical course completed by the household member, and write-in entries in selected items classified under the "others specify" category was encoded. Also, the description for occupation, industry and class of worker of household members will be encoded. This facilitated the verification of inconsistent entries between the occupation and industry codes.
Data appraisal
"Not computed".
Data Access
| Name | Affiliation | URL | |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Statistician | Philippine Statistics Authority | www.psa.gov.ph | info@psa.gov.ph |
| Is signing of a confidentiality declaration required? | Confidentiality declaration text |
|---|---|
| yes | The PSA and its field personnel shall hold all data supplied by the establishments/households/individuals in confidence. The information obtained from each respondent of the census/survey or individual/establishment in administrative records shall be for statistical purposes only and not for taxation, regulation nor investigation purposes. The data shall be processed with others of the same category and shall be disseminated in summary forms or statistical tables so as not to reveal the identity of any respondent. Confidentiality of primary data collected from respondents/administrative records systems is guaranteed by Section 26 of the Republic Act No. 10625 (Philippine Statistics Act of 2013). Penalties shall be enforced to acts of breach of confidential information pursuant to Section 27 of the said Act. |
Authorization to use this data is granted only to the client or data user and persons within its organization, if applicable. Under no circumstances shall the client reproduce, distribute, sell or lend the entrire data or parts thereof to any other data user apart from himself or that of authorized employees in his organization. The PSA shall hold the data user fully responsible for safeguarding the data from any unauthorized access or use. Before being granted access to the dataset, all users have to formally agree:
- To make no copies of any files or portions of files to which she/he is granted access except those authorized by the PSA.
- Not to use any technique in an attempt to learn the identity of any person, establishment, or sampling unit not identified in the dataset.
- To hold in strictest confidence the identification of any establishment or individual that may be inadvertently revealed in any documents or discussion, or analysis. Such inadvertent identification revealed in her/his analysis will be immediately be reported to the PSA. (Specific method of requesting and acquiring data shall then be included)
"Philippine Statistics Authority, April 2016 Labor Force Survey, Version 3.0 final data for public use.
Disclaimer and copyrights
The data users/researchers acknowledge that the PSA bears no liabilities and responsibilities for any particular, indirect, or consequential damages or any damages, whatsoever resulting from loss of use, or of data in connection with the use or for interpretations or inferences based upon such uses.
(c) 2016, Philippine Statistics Authority
Contacts
| Name | Affiliation | URL | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chief, Income and Employment Statistics Division | Philippine Statistics Authority | iesd.staff@psa.gov.ph | www.psa.gov.ph |
| Chief,Knowledge Management and Coordination Division | Philippine Statistics Authority | info@psa.gov.ph | www.psa.gov.ph |