As part of our wider response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the ONS has been looking at new ways to measure changes in wages and employment, including using government data sources quicker and introducing new online surveys. Here David Freeman talks about how our work on new surveys is progressing.
Read more on Moving online – how ONS is digitising its labour market surveys
The coronavirus is clearly having a very serious effect on the UK economy. Measuring its impact on the world of work presents unique challenges. Ahead of the latest labour market statistics release, David Freeman looks at how the ONS is responding to the pressing need for new information.
Read more on Measuring the labour market during Coronavirus
Access to new sources of data is helping the ONS to produce quicker and more detailed economic indicators. Now, working with HM Revenue and Customs, we have for the first time jointly published estimates of employees and earnings based on monthly real-time tax information. David Freeman explains what these new data give us and how they fit into the ongoing transformation of UK economics statistics.
Read more on No half measures: using tax data to monitor jobs and pay better
You’re either classed as employed or unemployed, right? Well, wrong, actually – there are three different possible ways people can be classified in the labour market. Here David Freeman looks at the third status, called ‘economic inactivity’ and explains how ONS statistics fully capture people’s involvement, or lack of it, with the world of work and why economically inactive people aren’t just in ‘hidden unemployment’.
Read more on Hiding in plain sight? Why economically inactive people aren’t in ‘hidden unemployment’
The monthly UK employment figures are among the most closely-watched indicators of the nation’s economic health. But behind the headline figures, the Office for National Statistics also gathers a wealth of local employment data that offer valuable insight into the everchanging nature and distribution of jobs. David Freeman sets out what’s available, how we gather it, and looks forward to some new and even more detailed statistics to come.
Read more on Local jobs for local people? How the ONS keeps abreast of shifting employment patterns