Annual Population Survey in Scotland 2005

Annex C - Definitions

LABOUR MARKET

Disability: The LFS questions on health and disability reflect the provisions of the Disability Discrimination Act ( DDA) 1995. The LFS broadly classifies disabled into three categories records:. DDA disabled (current disabled) only - who have a current disability which includes people who have a long-term disability which substantially limits their day-to-day activities; Work-limiting disabled - people who have a long-term disability which affects the kind of work or amount of work they might do; and a third category where respondents have both.

Economic activity rate: The number of people who are in employment or unemployed expressed as a percentage of the relevant population.

Economic inactivity rate: The number of economically inactive people expressed as a percentage of the relevant population.

Economically active: The economically active population are those who are either in employment or unemployed.

Economically inactive: Economically inactive people are not in employment, but do not satisfy all the criteria for unemployment. This group comprises those who want a job but who have not been seeking work in the last 4 weeks, those who want a job and are seeking work but not available to start and those who do not want a job. For example, students not working or seeking work and those in retirement are classed as economically inactive. It can be useful for some purposes to consider only those who are both economically inactive and of working age.

Employees: The division between employees and self-employed is based on survey respondents' own assessment of their employment status.

Employment: There are two main ways of looking at employment: the number of people with jobs or the number of jobs. These two concepts represent different things as one person can have more than one job. People aged 16 or over are classed as in employment (as an employee or self-employed) by the LFS, if they have done at least one hour of paid work in the week prior to their LFS interview or if they have a job that they are temporarily away from. People who do unpaid work in a family business and people on

Government-supported training and employment programmes are also included according to the International Labour Organisation ( ILO) convention.

Employment rate: The number of people in employment expressed as a percentage of the relevant population.

Ethnicity: From Spring 2001, the National Statistics standard classification of ethnic groups was used to define ethnicity into six categories. People interviewed on the LFS were asked to classify their own ethnic origin by means of the question "To which of these groups do you consider you belong? White, Mixed, Asian or Asian British, Black or Black British, Chinese or Other ethnic group" followed by a more detailed question. Prior to 2001-02, a five category classification was used: White; Black; Indian; Pakistani/Bangladeshi; and Mixed/Other origins.

Rates: Rates represent the proportion of the population or subgroup of the population with a certain characteristic. They allow changes in the labour market to be interpreted in a wider context, allowing for changes in the overall population or the number of people who are economically active. Rates can be calculated for different age groups. For employment, economic activity and economic inactivity, the most widely quoted rates are those for the working age population. For unemployment, headline rates are expressed as a percentage of the economically active population aged 16 and over. Those over retirement age who continue to be economically active will therefore be included in the base while those who are economically inactive will not.

Self-employment: The division between employees and self-employed is based on survey respondents' own assessment of their employment status.

Unemployment: The ILO definition of unemployment covers people who are: not in employment, want a job, have actively sought work in the previous 4 weeks and are available to start work within the next fortnight, or, out of work and have accepted a job which they are waiting to start in the next fortnight.

Unemployment rate: The number of unemployed people expressed as a percentage of the relevant economically active population.

Working age: Men aged 16-64 and women aged 16-59.

INACTIVITY

Children living in workless households: The proportion of dependent children aged under 19 years of age who are in households where no one is in work. The definition.of 'dependent' for these purposes means all children aged 0 - 15 and those aged 16 - 18 who are in full-time education.

16 to 19 year olds Not in Employment, Education or Training: The proportion of 16-19 year olds who are not classed as a student, not in employment nor participating in a government training programme.