Occupation

1
Occupation

• International Standard Classification of
  Occupations ISCO- 08
• David Hunter, Department of Statistics
  International Labour Office

2
Occupation concept and uses

• Occupation
• Refers to the type of work done by the person
  employed irrespective of where (the industry), or
  under what status in employment,
• An occupation is a set of jobs whose main tasks
  and duties are characterized by a high degree of
  similarity
• Major component of national labour market
  information
• Data needed for policy formulation for
• labour market programmes,
• educational planning,
• work related migration
• .

3
Concepts of occupation, industry and status in
employment

• In labour statistics all 3 concepts relate to a
  job in which a person is employed
• Job a set of tasks and duties performed, or
  meant to be performed, by one person including
  for an employer or in self employment.
• Some people have more than one job
• Data may be collected only for the main job, for
  a second job, a job previously held, or (for
  those who are not employed) for the last job held
• Status in employment and occupation are
  descriptive characteristics of a job
• Industry is a characteristic of the establishment
  employing a person in a job
• Occupation
• The type of work done by the person employed
  regardless of the industry, or under what status
  in employment.

4
International Standard Classification of
Occupations (ISCO)

• Most countries use national occupation
  classifications based on the (now out of date)
  ISCO-88
• Current version was endorsed by the ILO Governing
  Body in 2008
• For this reason it is known as ISCO-08
• Structure and group definitions available on ILO
  Website or on request
• Usable definitions of all groups have been
  available since July 2009
• To be published in English, French and Spanish as
  soon as possible
• Will be used in European Union collections from
  2010
• Hierarchically structured classification
  comprising
• 10 major groups
• 43 sub-major groups
• 131 minor groups
• 436 unit groups
• Many countries are currently updating their
  national occupation classifications to align with
  ISCO-08

5
What is ISCO used for?

• International reporting, comparison and
  exchange of statistical and administrative data
• A model for the development of national and
  regional classifications of occupations
• Used directly in countries that have not
  developed their own national classifications
• National Occupation Classifications are used for
• Statistics from censuses, household surveys,
  employer surveys and other sources.
• Administrative and policy-related activities such
  as
• matching job seekers with job vacancies
• educational planning
• management of employment related international
  migration
• determining wage rates

6
Occupation classifications in employment services

• Automatic matching of job-seekers to job
  vacancies
• Job seekers and vacancies coded to National
  Occupation Classifications (NOC)
• Resumes of matching jobseekers sent automatically
  to employers
• Or job vacancy details sent to clients
• May require more detail than provided by ISCO
• Possible need for more detail in NOC

7
Integrated occupational information systems

• Framework for provision of careers information
• Identification of skill shortages or oversupply
• Provision of integrated information about pay,
  job prospects, working hours, nature of work
  performed, for example
• US ONET http//online.onetcenter.org/
• Australian Job Outlook http//joboutlook.gov.au/p
  ages/help.aspx

8
Underlying concepts ISCO-08

• Job a set of tasks and duties performed, or
  meant to be performed, by one person including
  for an employer or in self employment.
• Occupation a set of jobs whose main tasks and
  duties are characterised by a high degree of
  similarity
• A person may be associated with an occupation
  through the main job currently held, a second
  job, or a job previously held
• Occupations are organised into groups according
  to skill level and skill specialisation
• Skill level is applied mainly at the top (major
  group) level of the classification.
• Within each major group occupations are arranged
  into unit groups, minor groups and sub-major
  groups, primarily on the basis of aspects of
  skill specialisation.

9
Table 1 Mapping of ISCO-08 major groups to
skill levels
ISCO-08 major groups Skill Level
1 - Managers 3 4
2 - Professionals 4
3 - Technicians and associate professionals 3
4 - Clerical support workers 5 - Service and sales workers 6 - Skilled agricultural and fishery workers 7 - Craft and related trades workers 8 - Plant and machine operators, and assemblers 2
9 - Elementary occupations 1
0 - Armed forces occupations 1, 2 4
10
What was wrong with ISCO-88?

• Seriously out-of-date in some areas
• (Eg. ICT, Office clerks, information clerks)
• Excessive detail in some areas
• (Eg. plant and machinery operators)
• Inadequate detail in some areas
• (Eg. service related occupations and occupations
  that predominate in the informal sector)
• Wide variation in the size of some sub-major and
  minor groups
• Grouping of managerial occupations
• Parallel groups in Major groups 2 and 3 due to
  differences in national education requirements

11
ISCO - Some of the more significant changes in
ISCO-08 (1)

• Elimination of parallel groups at different skill
  levels if tasks performed are the same
• Virtually all teaching occupations are classified
  in Sub-major Group 24, Teaching professionals
• Nurses are classified in Major groups 2 or 3
  depending on tasks performed and not on
  qualifications alone
• Reorganization of managerial occupations in Major
  Group 1
• Major updating and expansion of occupations in
  information and communications technology
• 2 new sub-major groups in Major groups 2 and 3
• Improved coverage and upgrading of health
  services occupations
• Identifiable at sub-major group level in Major
  groups 2 and 3 and at Minor group level in Major
  group 5, Sales and Service Workers

12
ISCO - Some of the more significant changes in
ISCO-08 (2)

• Reorganization of the section of the
  classification dealing with office clerks
• Impact of information and communications
  technology
• Increase from 2 to 4 sub-major groups in Major
  group 4, Clerical Support Workers
• Reorganization of the aggregate groupings for
  sales and service workers
• Increase from 2 to 4 sub-major groups in Major
  group 5
• More detailed categories and greater clarity for
  some occupational groups involved in agriculture
• Farmers and farm managers are classified in Major
  group 6, Skilled agricultural forestry and
  fisheries workers, with few exceptions
• Extended coverage of occupations that are
  significant in informal employment

13
Number of groups at each level of
ISCO-08(Numbers for ISCO-88 are shown in
brackets where different)
Major groups Sub-major Groups Minor groups Unit groups
1 Managers 4 (3) 11(8) 31 (33)
2 Professionals 6 (4) 27(18) 92 (55)
3 Technicians and associate professionals 5 (4) 20 84 (73)
4 Clerical support workers 4 (2) 8 (7) 29 (23)
5 Service and sales workers 4 (2) 13 (9) 40 (23)
6 Skilled agricultural, fishery, and forestry workers 3 (2) 9 (6) 18 (17)
7 Craft and related trades workers 5 (4) 14 (16) 66 (70)
8 Plant and machine operators, and assemblers 3 14 (20) 40 (70)
9 Elementary occupations 6 (3) 11 (10) 33 (25)
0 Armed forces occupations 3 (1) 3 (1) 3 (1)
Total ISCO-08 (ISCO-88) 43 (28) 130 (116) 436 (390)
14
ISCO-08 Major Group 1 Managers

•   11    Chief executives, senior officials and
  legislators
•     111 Legislators and senior officials     
•     112  Managing directors and chief executives
•    12    Administrative and commercial managers
•     121  Business services and administration
  managers
•     122  Sales, marketing and development
  managers
•    13    Production and specialised services
  managers
•     131 Production managers in agriculture,
  forestry and fisheries
• 132  Manufacturing, mining, construction, and
  distribution managers
•     133  Information and communications
  technology service managers 
• 134  Professional services managers
•    14    Hospitality, retail and other services
  managers
•     141  Hotel and restaurant managers
•     142  Retail and wholesale trade managers
•     143  Other services managers     

15
Sub-major groups in Major group 2, Professionals
- ISCO-88 and ISCO-08

ISCO-88 Code ISCO-88 Title ISCO-08 Code ISCO-08 Title
21 Physical, mathematical and engineering science professionals 21 Science and engineering professionals
22 Life science and health professionals 22 Health professionals
23 Teaching professionals 23 Teaching professionals
24 Other professionals 24 Business and administration professionals
25 Information and communications technology professionals
26 Legal, social and cultural professionals
16
22 Health professionals

• 221  Medical doctors
•      2211 Generalist medical practitioners
•      2212 Specialist medical practitioners
• 222   Nursing and midwifery professionals
•      2221 Nursing professionals
•      2222 Midwifery professionals
• 223 Traditional and complementary medicine
  professionals
• 2230 Traditional and complementary medicine
  professionals
• 224 Paramedical practitioners
• 2240 Paramedical practitioners
• 225   Veterinarians
• 2250 Veterinarians
• 226   Other health professionals
• 2261 Dentists
• 2262 Pharmacists
•   2263 Environmental and occupational health
  and hygiene professionals
•     2264 Physiotherapists
•     2265 Dieticians and nutritionists
•     2266 Audiologists and speech therapists

17
Sub-major groups in Major group 3, Technicians
and associate professionals - ISCO-88 and ISCO-08

ISCO-88 Code ISCO-88 Title ISCO-08 Code ISCO-08 Title
31 Physical and engineering science associate professionals 31 Science and engineering associate professionals
32 Life science and health associate professionals 32 Health associate professionals
33 Teaching associate professionals 33 Business and administration associate professionals
34 Other associate professionals 34 Legal, social, cultural and related associate professionals
35 Information and communications technicians
18
Major group 4, Clerical support workers
Sub-major and minor groups

• 41 General and keyboard clerks
• 411 General office clerks
• 412 Secretaries (general)
• 413 Keyboard operators
• 42 Customer services clerks
• 421 Tellers, money collectors and related clerks
• 422 Client information workers
• 43 Numerical and material recording clerks
• 431 Numerical clerks
• 432 Material-recording and transport clerks
• 44 Other clerical support workers
• 441 Other clerical support workers

19
Sales and Service Workers

• 51 Personal service workers
• 511 Travel attendants, conductors and guides
• 512 Cooks
• 513 Waiters and bartenders
• 514 Hairdressers, beauticians and related
  workers
• 515 Building and housekeeping supervisors
• 516 Other personal services workers
• 52 Sales workers
• 521 Street and market salespersons
• 522 Shop salespersons
• 523 Cashiers and ticket clerks
• 524 Other sales workers
• 53 Personal care workers
• 531 Child care workers and teachers' aides
• 532 Carers in health services
• 54 Protective services workers
• 541 Protective services workers

20
52 Sales workers

• 521 Street and market salespersons
• 5211 Stall and market salespersons
• 5212 Street food salespersons
• 522 Shop salespersons
• 5221 Shop keepers
• 5222 Shop supervisors
• 5223 Shop sales assistants
• 523 Cashiers and ticket clerks
• 5230 Cashiers and ticket clerks
• 524 Other sales workers
• 5241 Fashion and other models
• 5242 Sales demonstrators
• 5243 Door to door salespersons
• 5244 Contact centre salespersons
• 5245 Service station attendants
• 5246 Food service counter attendants
• 5249 Sales workers not elsewhere classified

21
Major group 6 Skilled agricultural, forestry and
fishery workers

• Market-oriented skilled agricultural workers
• 611 Market gardeners and crop growers
• 6111 Field crop and vegetable growers
• 6112 Tree and shrub crop growers
• 6113 Gardeners, horticultural and nursery
  growers
• 6114 Mixed crop growers
• 612 Animal producers
• 6121 Livestock and dairy producers
• 6122 Poultry producers
• 6123 Apiarists and sericulturists
• 6129 Animal producers not elsewhere classified
• 613 Mixed crop and animal producers
• 6130 Mixed crop and animal producers

22
62 Market-oriented skilled, forestry and fishery
and hunting workers

• 621 Forestry and related workers
• 6210 Forestry and related workers
• 622 Fishery workers, hunters and trappers
• 6211 Aquaculture workers
• 6212 Inland and coastal waters fishery workers
• 6213 Deep-sea fishery workers
• 6214 Hunters and trappers

23
63 Subsistence farmers, fishers, hunters and
gatherers

• ISCO-88 Sub-major group 62, Subsistence
  agricultural workers has been retained
• Name and code change
• Extra detail to reflect the minor group structure
  of 61
• The definitions for this group and for Sub-major
  groups 61, 62 and 92 have been improved to make
  it clear that
• Workers engaged in agricultural, forestry and
  fisheries activities should be classified in
  Sub-major group 63 if the main aim of the
  production is to provide goods (mainly food) for
  consumption by the workers own household
• Those who only perform simple tasks requiring
  little judgement or experience should
  nevertheless be classified in Sub major group 92,
  Agricultural, forestry and fishery labourers
• Subsistence hunters, trappers and collectors
  should also be classified in Sub-major group 63

24
63 Subsistence farmers, fishers, hunters and
gatherers

• 631 Subsistence crop farmers
• 6310 Subsistence crop farmers
• 632 Subsistence livestock farmers
• 6320 Subsistence livestock farmers
• 633 Subsistence mixed crop and livestock farmers
• 6330 Subsistence mixed crop and livestock
  farmers
• 634 Subsistence fishers, hunters, trappers and
  gatherers
• 6340 Subsistence fishers, hunters, trappers and
  gatherers

25
7 Craft and related trades workers

• 71 Building and related trades workers
• 711 Building frame and related trades workers
• 712 Building finishers and related trades workers
• 713 Painters, building structure cleaners and
  related trades workers
• 72 Metal, machinery and related trades workers
• 721 Sheet and structural metal workers, moulders
  and welders, and related workers
• 722 Blacksmiths, toolmakers and related trades
  workers
• 723 Machinery mechanics and repairers
• 73 Handicraft and printing workers
• 731 Handicraft workers
• 732 Printing trades workers
• 74 Electrotechnology trades workers
• 741 Electrical equipment installers and repairers
• 742 Electronics and telecommunications installers
  and repairers
• 75 Food processing, wood working, textile and
  other craft and related trades workers
• 751 Food processing and related trades workers
• 752 Wood treaters, cabinet-makers and related
  trades workers
• 753 Textile, garment and related trades workers
• 754 Other craft and related workers

26
8 Plant and machine operators, and assemblers

• 81 Stationary plant and machine operators
• 811 Mining and mineral processing plant operators
• 812 Metal processing and finishing plant
  operators
• 813 Chemical and photographic products plant and
  machine operators
• 814 Rubber, plastic and paper products machine
  operators
• 815 Textile, fur and leather products machine
  operators
• 816 Food and related products machine operators
• 818 Other stationary plant and machine operators
• 82 Assemblers
• 821 Assemblers
• 83 Drivers and mobile plant operators
• 831 Locomotive engine drivers and related workers
• 832 Car, van and motorcycle drivers
• 833 Heavy truck and bus drivers
• 834 Mobile plant operators
• 835 Ships' deck crews and related workers

27
9 Elementary occupations

•   91 Cleaners and helpers
•     911 Domestic, hotel and office cleaners and
  helpers
•      912 Vehicle, window, laundry and other hand
  cleaning workers  
• 92  Agricultural, fishery and forestry labourers
•     921 Agricultural, fishery and forestry
  labourers     
•   93  Labourers in mining, construction,
  manufacturing and transport
•     931 Mining and construction labourers
•     932 Manufacturing labourers
•     933 Transport and storage labourers 
•    
•   94  Food preparation assistants
•     941 Food preparation assistants  
•    
•   95  Street and related sales and service
  workers
•     951 Street and related service workers
•      952 Street vendors
•   96  Refuse workers and other elementary service
  workers

28
Models for developing or adapting national
classifications based on ISCO

• Adopt ISCO directly for national use
• Much less than ideal
• Some small countries with limited resources have
  no other choice
• Collaborating with similar neighbouring countries
  may be an option
• Some work at national level is still required
• Adapt ISCO to suit national circumstances
• A popular choice
• National occupation classification NOC is not
  based on ISCO
• A common situation for countries with own
  tradition or history of occupation classification
• May make adjustments to national classification
  to improve comparability with ISCO or take
  advantages of new features in ISCO

29
Possible points for discussion

• How suitable is ISCO-08 for use in national
  statistical applications in Africa?
• What types of adaptations need to be made to
  satisfy national analytical needs in African
  countries?
• Is employment in your country concentrated in
  certain industries or occupational groups.? Which
  ones?
• What steps do you need to take in advance of
  upcoming Censuses?
• Do you have the capacity (technical and
  resources) to undertake this work
• What kind of technical support is needed and how
  can this be provided?
• Are there opportunities for collaboration between
  countries on occupation classification?
• Harmonization of occupational information in
  single labour markets (Eg East Africa)
• Need for collaboration and coordination between
  ministries of labour, employment services and
  statistical offices on occupation classification.

30

• Collection and coding of data on occupation

31
Occupation information needed for coding

• For accurate coding to any level of ISCO (and
  related national classifications) information is
  needed on
• Name or title of occupation
• Main tasks or duties usually performed in the job
• The following information may also be useful
• The type of economic activity of the
  establishment (industry)
• Whether or not the main aim of the activity is
  own consumption (subsistence)
• Information about the level of skill or
  qualifications of an individual is not necessary
  and not useful

32
Occupation types of question

• Three types of question on occupation are
  typically used.
• One or two pre-coded questions on the jobs that
  the individuals had (not recommended)
• One (write-in) question to obtain
  occupation-relevant information about an
  individuals job
• Two or more (write-in) questions, a basic
  question on the title of the position held with
  follow-up on main tasks of the individual in the
  job

33
Occupation single open-ended questions

• A single question such as
• What is the main occupation of (the person) in
  this workplace?
• What kind of work did (the person) do?
• may provide adequate information from some but
  not all respondents
• But may yield responses such as Manager,
  Consultant, Farm work that can not be coded
  accurately to any level of ISCO
• Interviewers need to be trained to probe when
  information provided is insufficient
• Two questions are preferred

34
Occupation multiple open-ended questions

• Use of separate questions on job title and tasks
  performed generally assures that sufficient
  detail is provided
• Asking for two different types of information
  helps the respondent to respond fully, for
  example
• Title Sales manager
• Tasks Selling used cars
• Title Customer service consultant
• Tasks Selling used cars

35
Occupation question agricultural activities

• Special attention should be given to subsistence
  farming
• Are separate job titles used for subsistence
  farmers?
• If subsistence farming is significant consider an
  additional question
• E.g. Do you produce goods mainly for sale or
  mainly for your own or family use?
• 4 response categories are recommended such as
• Only for sale
• Mainly for sale but partly for own or family use
• Mainly for own or family use but partly for sale
• Only for own or family use
• The respondent must decide whether production is
  mainly for sale or mainly for own consumption
• If subsistence activity is collected as part of
  Status in employment question it should be used
  in occupation coding or edit process

36
Hypothetical questions recommended for testing
and use (part 1)

• (In the main job held last week) what was (your)
  work or occupation?
•  
• Please give full job title and be specific, for
  example
• Fruit picker
• Legal secretary
• Restaurant manager
• Secondary school teacher
• Cattle farmer
• Registered nurse
•  
• Occupation
•  
• 
  

37
Hypothetical questions recommended for testing
and use (part 2)

• What are your main tasks or duties in that job?
•  
• Please give details. For example
• Picking and carrying oranges and peaches
• Preparing legal documents
• Managing the operations of a restaurant
• Teaching mathematics
• Managing a cattle farm
• Caring for the sick and administering medications
•  
• Main tasks or duties
• 
  

38
Coding occupation data

• The main aim of the coding process
• To determine and record correctly to which of the
  categories in the respective classifications the
  jobs belong
• at the most detailed level of the classification
  possible on the basis of the information provided
  in the responses
• Responses to up to four open ended questions have
  to be assigned to the appropriate category in an
  occupation classification
• Not a simple process
• Responses to questions on occupation (title and
  tasks), industry and name and address of
  workplace are relevant
• Coding should be done using an index of
  occupations based on words used in surveys
• Mapping directly to the classification is error
  prone and inefficient!

39
Strategic coding and processing options

• Field or office coding?
• The following choices are available
• The interviewer codes in the field, either during
  the interview or before the questionnaire is
  forwarded for further processing
• A variation on pre-coded questions
• OR
• Enumerator writes down the response (or keywords)
  and codes the response after the interview using
  an index.
• Specially trained coders code in connection with
  consistency checks of the questionnaire and data
  entry
• Office coding the preferred option in most
  cases

40
Office coding

• Can be done manually with a paper index, or with
  computer assistance
• Can be combined with automatic coding
• Coders may specialize in the coding of one (or a
  few) variables or deal with the whole form
• Coders need to be thoroughly trained and tested
  before they start coding
• Quality of coding operations can and should be
  rigorously controlled

41
What is a coding index?

• The key instrument for matching responses to
  questions with classification codes
• It can be in the form of a durable printed
  publication, a loose-leaf binder, computer
  printout, or a machine readable file within a
  computer system
• The same index can be used in all of these forms
• Formal names for classification categories (Eg
  education manager) are not usually the same as
  terms normally used to describe jobs and
  industrial activities
• The index entries usually includes a code for one
  or more classification systems, and some words
  based on responses given in censuses and surveys
• The index is searched alphabetically but can also
  be sorted in code order for updating and query
  resolution

42
Developing and updating a coding index

• Index must be in place before the coding
  operations start
• Basis should be responses to questions in surveys
• The same index should be used in all household
  based collections
• Collection and coding of elements to be included
  in the index should be done by experts in the
  classification concerned

43
Organization and structure of the index

• Two basic approaches
• All-inclusive
• Structured
• In an all-inclusive index every type of response
  should in theory have an entry in the index,
  usually in natural word order
• Size of index may slow down coding process
• Irrelevant words have to be included in the index
• Inevitably, many responses do not match exactly
  with an entry in the index
• Supplementary information from task, industry and
  place of work questions are not used
  systematically
• May work efficiently and accurately in automatic
  coding

44
Organization and structure of the index (2)

• A structured index does not include every
  possible response
• Irrelevant words are omitted
• Each entry starts with a key word
• If the key word is insufficient to uniquely
  identify a category, one or more qualifying words
  or phrases are added
• Response keyword/first qualifying word/second
  qualifying word
• Cost accountant accountant/cost
• Drilling machine operator operator/machine/drilli
  ng
• Aircraft instrument maker maker/instrument/aircra
  ft
• Room maid maid/room
• Marine biologist biologist/marine
• Capstan lathe setter-operator setter-operator/cap
  stan lathe

45
Automatic and computer assisted coding

• Both approaches use computing power to speed up
  process of searching an index, identifying
  matching responses, following coding rules and
  recording the correct code
• In Computer assisted coding (CAC) the coder
  enters a small number of characters from key and
  qualifying words
• Matching index entries are displayed and coder
  selects matching entry
• Correct code is recorded by coder or the computer
  or a query is raised
• In automatic coding (AC) responses are key
  entered or captured photographically, then
  matched automatically by the computer
• Match rates of up to 70 have been achieved
• Remaining entries are coded using CAC
• Requires a high degree of sophistication and a
  very well designed index
• Software solutions are available at low cost but
  cost of integration into larger processing
  systems may be high

46
Data collection and coding points for discussion

• What problems do you foresee in collecting and
  producing employment statistics classified by
  occupation in your country?
• For example
• Is subsistence agriculture important in your
  country and how can you measure it?
• What questions have been used in existing
  national surveys? Do you need to change these.
• How will you capture, code and process data on
  occupation?

47
Recap on discussion points from Part 1

• How suitable is ISCO-08 for use in national
  statistical applications in Africa?
• What types of adaptations need to be made to
  satisfy national analytical needs in African
  countries?
• Is employment in your country concentrated in
  certain industries or occupational groups.? Which
  ones?
• What steps do you need to take in advance of
  upcoming Censuses?
• Do you have the capacity (technical and
  resources) to undertake this work
• What kind of technical support is needed and how
  can this be provided?
• Are there opportunities for collaboration between
  countries on occupation classification?
• Harmonization of occupational information in
  single labour markets (Eg East Africa)
• Need for collaboration and coordination between
  ministries of labour, employment services and
  statistical offices on occupation classification.