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Labour Force Survey data content from January 2008 onwards

The data content was reviewed on 5 November 2012.

1. Labour force status and other activity

  • Active population
  • Employed and employment rate
  • Unemployed and unemployment rate
  • Activity of persons not in labour force
  • Main activity (own view)

2. Data on workplace and occupation in both main and secondary job

  • Number of jobs
  • Size of workplace
  • Industry
  • Employer sector (private, local government, central government)
  • Location and country of workplace
  • Occupation
  • Status in employment (employee, self-employed, unpaid family worker)
  • Socio-economic group (manual worker, upper-level and lower-level employee)
  • Paid labour force of the self-employed
  • Employees in supervisory functions
  • Employees' monthly salary

3. Data on employment relationship

  • Permanent / temporary employment relationship and reason for temporary employment relationship
  • Duration of employment relationship
  • Part-time / full-time work and reason for part-time work
  • Temporary employment agency work

4. Data on working hours and arrangements related to them

  • Shift work
  • Period-based work
  • Usual weekly working hours
  • Hours worked (work input) in main and secondary job
  • Days worked
  • Overtime (paid / unpaid)
  • On-call hours at the place of work
  • Evening, night and weekend work
  • Working at home
  • Absence during the Survey week: main reason and duration of absence
  • Absence due to sickness and family leaves

 5. Unemployment, underemployment, job seeking

  • Lay-off for a fixed period of time or until further notice
  • Duration of unemployment
  • Methods of job seeking
  • Obstacles to job seeking
  • Type of job sought (full-time or part-time job, as an employee or a self-employed person)
  • Valid registration with the employment and economic development centre, and unemployment benefit
  • Underemployment: whether an employed person would like to increase his/her present working hours
  • Number of weekly working hours desired by the employed
  • Disguised unemployment

6. Education completed and studies in the past four weeks

  • General basic education
  • Qualification or degree attained (Register of Completed Education and Degrees)
  • Level and field of qualification or degree
  • Participation in education leading to a qualification or degree
  • Participation in course training
  • Participation in course training related to work or occupation
  • Participation in course training during paid working hours
  • Total number of lessons in four weeks

7. Previous activity

  • Activity one year ago and data on job held one year ago
  • Previous paid employment of persons currently unemployed during the past eight years and data on previous workplace

8. Data on the household

  • Size of household
  • Type of household
  • Activity of household members aged 15 to 74
  • Employment relationships and working hours of employed household members aged 15 to 74

The most important background variables for key employment and unemployment indicators

  • Sex
  • Age
  • Education
  • Region
  • Industry
  • Employer sector (private, local government, central government)
  • Occupation
  • Status in employment
  • Socio-economic group


Last updated 5.11.2012

Referencing instructions:

Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): Labour force survey [e-publication].
ISSN=1798-7857. Helsinki: Statistics Finland [referred: 5.11.2024].
Access method: http://www.stat.fi/til/tyti/tyti_2008-02-19_tlu_001_en.html