Labour Market Statistics for Scotland by Ethnicity, January to December 2021

About this publication

This publication contains Scottish labour market statistics for January to December 2021. Estimates presented are by ethnic group and from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS). Estimates in Annex A use the 3-year pooled APS data for January 2019 to December 2021.

The APS combines the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and the English, Welsh, and Scottish LFS boosts. This provides a larger annual sample of households in Scotland and the United Kingdom. Compared to the quarterly LFS, the annual APS provides more statistically robust estimates. This is especially true for local areas and smaller populations such as breakdowns by ethnic groups. The APS is the National Statistics source for labour market indicators by region and age.

Important Note

Since August 2021, APS responses for periods April 2019 to March 2020 and onwards use weights derived from new populations. The new populations incorporate growth rates from HM Revenue and Customs Real Time Information (RTI). This was to allow for the different trends during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The new weightings gave improved estimates for both rates and levels.

In July and September 2022, APS responses for the periods outlined above were reweighted again using updated HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Real Time Information (RTI) data. The ONS have written an article which provides further information on the reweighting exercise.

The Government introduced policies in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these policies were still in place during the period of the 2020 and 2021 APS estimates. The impact of these policies are likely to affect these estimates.

Between April 2020 and the end of September 2021 some Employees were furloughed. These employees were classed as employed, but temporarily away from work. This definition is consistent with labour market definitions as outlined by ONS.

Ethnicity Definitions

Estimates for white and minority ethnic groups are presented using the variables available on the Annual Population Survey data and are consistent with ONS labour market outputs for labour market status and ethnicity pay gap.

Questions on ethnic group have been asked in the APS since it started in 2004. Changes made in January and April 2011 brought the questions in line with 2011 Census data. As such, a break in the series exists before 2011 and only data from 2011 onwards is included.

Currently in the APS respondents are asked “what is your ethnic group?” and are given the following options to choose from:

• “White”
• “Mixed/Multiple ethnic groups”
• “Asian/Asian Scottish/Asian British”
• “African”
• “Caribbean or Black”
• “Arab”
• “Other ethnic group”

Other questions ask for more detail about respondent's ethnic group. It is important that results should be presented in as much detail as possible but this is often not possible due to the robustness of the sample. The problem of small estimates and samples can be overcome by combining categories. This is not ideal as it may hide inequalities that occur between separate ethnic groups.

For the purpose of the analysis presented here:

• "Minority Ethnic" includes “Mixed or Multiple”; “Asian”; “African”; “Caribbean or Black”; “Arab”, and “Other ethnic groups”. It describes all ethnic groups excluding those who answered “White” to the first question.
• “White” includes ethnic groups such as “White – Polish” and “White – Gypsy or Irish Traveller”. These ethnic groups may also suffer labour market disadvantages.

The term “Minority Ethnic” aids narrative and provides a concise terminology. The terminology used aligns with Scottish Government guidance.

Following work for the 2021 Censuses in England and Wales and Northern Ireland, Scotland’s Census 2022, and work being undertaken by ONS to transform the Labour Force Survey, the question on ethnic group will likely evolve to better represent the people living in Scotland, the United Kingdom, and other stakeholder requirements.