Questions to ask

Questions designed to harmonise the collection of data across interview surveys can be used to identify students and the long-term unemployed. For information on these questions, see Economic status and Industry on the Harmonisation page for primary standards.

Two series of questions are needed in order to derive the NS-SEC: three questions on occupation and five questions on employment status/size of organisation. These harmonised questions are included below. The instructions for interviewers are shown in bullet points.

Occupation

Questions 1 to 3 collect information for coding to the Standard Occupational Classification 2000.

They are asked about current job for those in paid work or about last main job for those who have ever had paid work, with the exception of full-time students and those who have been unemployed for more than a year who are allocated to residual categories.

Question 1 - Industry description

"What did the firm/organisation you worked for mainly make or do (at the place where you worked)?"

(Open)

  • Describe fully - probe manufacturing or processing or distributing and main goods produced, materials used, wholesale or retail etc.

Question 2 - Occupation title current or last main job

"What was your (main) job?"

(Open)

Question 3 - Occupation description current or last main job

"What did you mainly do in your job?"

(Open)

  • Check special qualifications/training needed to do the job

Employment status/size of organisation

Questions 4 to 8 collect information for deriving the employment status/size of organisation variable. The interviewer asks questions 5 and 6 when the respondent answers 'Employee' to question 4. The interviewer asks questions 7 when the respondent answers 'Self-employed' to question 4, and 8 when the respondent answers 'With employees' to question 7.

Question 4 - Employee or self-employed

"Were you working as an employee or were you self-employed?"

1. Employee  Go to question 5

2. Self-employed  Go to question 7

  • The division between employees and self-employed is based on respondent's own assessment of their employment status in their main job.

Question 5 - Supervisory status

"In your job, did you have any formal responsibility for supervising the work of other employees?"

1. Yes                Go to question 6

2. No                  Go to question 6

  • Do not include:

  • supervisors of children, teachers, nannies, childminders

  • supervisors of animals

  • people who supervise security or buildings only, for example caretakers, security guards

Question 6 - Number of employees (Employees)

"How many people worked for your employer at the place where you worked?

Were there ... (running prompt)...

1. 1 to 24,

2. 25 to 499, or

3. 500 or more employees?"

  • We are interested in the size of the 'local unit of the establishment' at which the respondent works in terms of total number of employees. The 'local unit' is considered to be the geographical location where the job is mainly carried out. Normally this will consist of a single building, part of a building, or at the largest a self-contained group of buildings.

  • It is the total number of employees at the respondent's workplace that we are interested in, not just the number employed within the particular section or department in which he/she works.

[Note: An additional break, (...1 to 9, 10 to 24) is needed if the SOC2000 codes have to be mapped to the International Standard Classification of Occupations 1988 (COM).]

Question 7 - Self-employed working on own or with employees

"Were you working on your own or did you have employees?"

1. On own/with partner(s) but no employees

2. With employees            Go to question 8

Question 8 - Number of employees (Self-employed)

"How many people did you employ at the place where you worked?

Were there ... (running prompt)...

1. 1 to 24,

2. 25 to 499, or

3. 500 or more employees?"

[Note: An additional break, (...1 to 9, 10 to 24) is needed if the SOC2000 codes have to be mapped to the International Standard Classification of Occupations 1988 (COM).]

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