Number of employments and earnings

The statistics of the number of employees and jobs (employments) are based on reported information from A-ordningen for the middle month of a given quarter. Statistics Norway follows the recommendations of the International Labour Organization (ILO) regarding preparation of labor statistics in the choice of key concepts and definitions.

Job-related characteristics

Employed persons are persons who performed paid work of at least one hour's duration in the reference week, as well as persons who have such work but who were temporarily absent due to illness, vacation, paid leave, etc. Employed persons include employees and self-employed persons.

Employees are persons who receive compensation for work in the form of earnings. For employees with more than one job (employment), one is established as the most important (i.e., the main job (employment)).

Job/employment: Job and employment are used synonymously and defines work compensated by earnings. A person may have several jobs/employments in different establishments.

Employer-related characteristics

The characteristics of place of work and industry division/sector are obtained from the Central Register of Business Establishments and Enterprises (CRE) and apply to the establishment where the person works.

Information about the sector is retrieved from the CRE. Sector is classified according to the Classification of Institutional Sector.

Personal characteristics

Characteristics such as place of residence, sex, and age are obtained from the National Registry.

Residents are defined as persons registered in the National Registry and also include temporary residents who plan on staying in Norway for six months or more.

Non-residents are defined as persons registered in the National Registry with a planned stay in Norway of less than six months. Non-residents include persons with a temporary social security number (D-number) or registered as emigrants, but who work in Norway.

Immigrants are defined as persons who are born abroad, have foreign-born parents and grandparents, and later immigrated to Norway. Data on immigration status and country background are retrieved from registries at Statistics Norway.

Earning terms

The term earning relates to payment for work in an employment relationship. The statistics do not include payment or benefit in kind, insurance, expense allowance, holiday pay etc. Gross earnings before tax is the basis of the earning terms.

Basic monthly earning is the fixed amount that is paid, whether it is defined as an hourly, monthly, fortnightly or weekly earnings. Basic monthly earning is the actual paid amount at the time of count and is often described as earnings on a scale or regular basic earning. Qualification/skills allowances and other regular personal allowances are included.

Monthly earnings include basic monthly earning, variable additional allowances and bonuses. This is measured in the middle month of the quarter. Overtime pay is not included in monthly earnings.

Full-time equivalents: In order to compare earnings between full-time and part-time employees, the earnings of part-time employees are converted to the equivalent for full-time work. This is done using the percentage of each part-time employee’s position as a conversion factor. Monthly earnings per full-time equivalent for part-time employees can then be merged with the monthly earnings of full-time employees so that the average monthly earnings for all employees can be calculated.

Payment in cash includes all payments in cash from the employer including basic monthly earnings, fixed and variable additional allowances, bonuses, overtime pay and other payments in cash not specified here, before taxes.

Job flows: Job increases and job decreases in establishments

Job increase and job decrease is based on whether the number of jobs (employments) in a given establishment has increased or decreased during the last year for a given quarter. The tables distinguishes between job flows as a result of new establishments, terminated establishments and increase/decrease in existing establishments. Existing establishments is an establishment with employees on both points of measure. New establishments were not established or had no employees at first point of measure. Terminated establishments had employees at the first point of measure but was terminated or had no employees at the last point of measure.

Within the different industries, job increase and job decrease can be a result of existing establishments changing industry between the points of measure. All jobs (employments) that are moved counts as job decrease in the industry they are leaving and job increase in the industry they are entering. The establishment can have the same amount of jobs (employments) on both points of measure, but we will still see a job increase in one industry and job decrease in another. In the statbank table there are numbers who specifically shows job increase and job decrease as a result of existing establishments changing industry. This will also be the case when distinguishing job increase and job decrease by sector. Since establishments can change industry without changing sector and vice versa, the number of job increases and job decreases in the tables by industry will differ from the numbers in the tables by sector.

Labour force flows: New hirings and terminated hirings

Labour force flows occur as a result of a replacement of employees in establishments. This is affected by new hirings, terminated hirings and employees changing jobs. The statbank tables distinguishes between labour force flows as a result of these measurements. Jobs (employments) are measured by establishments, which means that employees changing establishment within the same enterprise also contributes to labour force flows. The statistics are based on two points of measure (same quarter, past and present year), meaning that short term jobs (employments) between the points of measure are not included in the labour force flows.

Labour force flows and job flows (described above) are closely related. Job flows describes job increase and job decrease, and the establishments are the focus area. Labour force flows focus on the employee, and the statistics allows for distinguishing numbers by sex, age, education, immigration categories etc. In total, job increases and job decreases (job flows) adds up to the same change in number of jobs as new hirings and terminated hirings in the establishments (labour force flows).

Monthly figures from a-ordningen

The purpose of the additional tables is to provide a frequent overview of the economic trends in Norway, as measured by changes in the number of jobs (employments), employees and payment in cash.

The experimental statistics includes all employed persons who have their place of work in Norwegian establishments, regardless of age and whether the employee is a resident in Norway or not. The requirement for being included is either having received payment in the reference period, being temporarily absent due to leave or being laid off temporarily or having received compensation for wages e.g. maternity leave, parental benefits or sickness benefits. Self-employed are not included.

The tables contain both preliminary and final figures based on monthly information from a-ordningen. In the «first version» of the monthly figures, there are some jobs/employees that are not included due to delays in the reporting, as a result we refer to the figures as preliminary. In the final figures, we use a «second version» from a-ordningen, which is available one month later and where the above-mentioned jobs/employees are included. The ordinary labour market statistics that use data from a-ordningen are all based on this second version. Using the first version means that we do not capture all jobs/employees in line with the employment definition, but it enables earlier publication.

The jobs/employees that are not captured, as a result of using the first version, consists of delayed reporting, replacements for previous months and jobs with various time delays. The latter includes a) a newly started employment without pay in the reference week who receives pay the following month, and b) employment without pay in the reference week, but with pay in both the month before and after. The reference week is the week that contains the 16^th, which is the 3^rd week of the month.

The industrial classification is in accordance with the revised Standard Industrial Classification (NOS D 383), which is based on the EU-standard of NACE Rev. 2.

The occupational classification is in accordance with the Standard Classification of Occupations (STYRK-08), which is based on ISCO-08 (COM).

The sector classification is in accordance with the Classification of Institutional Sector.

Breakdown by county and municipality is in accordance with the list of counties and municipalities as of the 1st in the middle month of a given quarter.

Name: Number of employments and earnings
Topic: Labour market and earnings

Division for Labour Market and Wage Statistics

Municipality, county, and the country as a whole

Quarterly

None

Source data are permanently stored.

The purpose of the current statistics is to elucidate changes in the number of jobs (employments) and employees, as well as provide tables of the development at a detailed regional level (municipalities and counties) that we do not have in the Labour Force Survey (LFS) or the quarterly national accounts.

The statistics are based on A-ordningen. A-ordningen was established in 2015 and is a common reporting system for everyone disbursing earnings, pension, and other benefits. It is based on monthly reporting of relevant information in the form of a so-called a-melding, which is transmitted electronically to the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV), the Norwegian Tax Administration, and Statistics Norway.

The statistics were first published in January 2018, with figures dating back to 1st quarter 2016.

Public administration and local administration in particular, employers' and employees' organisations, media, individual companies, and researchers

No external user has access to the figures until 8 a.m. on the day of publication at https://www.ssb.no/en/. Notice about the publication are given in the statistics calendar at least three months in advance.

There are two different approaches that can be used when describing employment in Norway:

1. the participation of the population in the labor market
2. establishments use of labor in the production of goods and services

When looking at the population's participation in the labor market, the population is normally limited to persons aged 15-74 years and registered as residents in Norway. This approach is used in the annual registry-based employment statistics and in the Labor Force Survey (LFS).

When looking at the establishments ' use of labor in the production of goods and services, it is common to include all employed persons who have their place of work in Norwegian establishments, regardless of age and whether the employee is registered as a resident of Norway or not. This approach is used by the national accounts and structural statistics. It is also this population that is used in the current statistics on the number of employees and jobs (employments) (see the Production section for more information).

The annual registry-based employment statistics describe employment and industry division/sector at a detailed regional level. The statistics are based on persons registered as residents of Norway according to the National Registry and working in Norwegian establishments. The criterion is that you are expected to stay for at least six months in the country. Employed persons include employees and self-employed persons. The statistics include employed persons per 4th quarter (reference week in November). For employed persons with more than one job (employment), one is identified as the most important. The main difference between the quarterly statistics on the number of jobs (employments) and the annual registry-based employment statistics is that the latter statistics also includes self-employed persons, but it does not include employees on short-term stays (i.e., planned stay of less than six months). In addition, the registry-based employment statistics are restricted to 15-74 years, while there are no age limits in the statistics on the number of jobs (employments) and employees.

When it comes to reporting the number of jobs (employments) in the national accounts and other economic statistics, this is also based on Norwegian establishments, regardless of whether the person is resident or not. This is the same approach as in the current statistics.

Act on Official Statistics and Statistics Norway § 10, cf. Act on the employer's reporting of employment and income conditions, etc. (the a-opplysnings Act) § 3.

Not relevant

These statistics are based on the establishments’ use of labor in the production
of goods and services in Norway (see the Coherence with other statistics subsection
under the Background section for more information). When looking at the establishments’ use of labor in the production of goods and services, it is common to include all employed persons who have their place of
work in Norwegian establishments, regardless of age and whether the employee is resident in Norway or
not. This also includes foreign employees on short-term stays (non-residents).

Employed persons include employees and self-employed persons. Only the former are reported to A-ordningen. Therefore, the current statistics only cover jobs (employments) among employees

Data sources

The main source of the statistics is A-ordningen, which is a coordinated digital collection of job (employment), income, and tax deductions for the Norwegian Tax Administration, the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV), and Statistics Norway. This means that Statistics Norway receives information about earnings and employees directly from the so-called a-meldingen, which is the electronic message containing all the information collected. More information may be found on https://www.skatteetaten.no/bedrift-og-organisasjon/arbeidsgiver/a-meldingen/.

In addition to A-ordningen, other registers are used, the most important being Vernepliktsverket and Enhetsregisteret and the Central Register of Business Establishments and Enterprises (CRE).

Sampling

Not relevant

Data Collection

The statistics is not based on data collection, but  a number of different registries:

• Statistics Norway receives monthly data from A-ordningen.
• Statistics Norway receives monthly data from Vernepliktsverket.
• Variables such as place of work and industry division/sector are obtained from Enhetsregisteret and the Central Register of Business Establishments and Enterprises (CRE).
• Personal characteristics are obtained from the National Registry.

Calculations

The statistics is solely based on register data, meaning that the calculations consist of summing up the numbers of employees and jobs (employments) in specific Groups.

Reported level of earnings is average values. This is based on jobs (employments) with earnings equal to the ones defined under 'Earning terms' at the point of measure. Not all jobs (employments) has an earning each month, meaning that they can be included in enumeration, not affecting the calculation of average earnings.

Not relevant

Statistics Norway’s common rules of confidentiality are followed.

Comparable figures are available from 1st quarter 2016 onwards.

These statistics are not comparable to the annual register-based employment statistics or the Labour Force Survey (LFS), as they are based on another population. Nor will the statistics be completely comparable to the employment figures in the national accounts, although the population is essentially similar. The difference is due to the fact that the national accounts publish figures for employed persons, which also include self-employed persons. In addition, the number of employed persons in the national accounts is given as an average for all months in the quarter. For more information, see the Background section.

In the first quarter of 2020 (2020Q1) there was a change in the method for estimating working hours. The change only affects the distribution of wage earners by different classifications. The categorical placement of wage earners is decided by their main job. The new method may cause a change in main job for people having several jobs and hence their placement as wage earners by industry, occupation, place of work etc. The change in method does not lead to significant systematic changes between groups, and in most cases the number of wage earners will be close to unaffected. In the first quarter of 2020 the change in method caused a net change of about 3000 wage earners by industry (17 groups). In other words, the industries having a decrease in the number of wage earners had a total decrease of about 3000 wage earners. Other industries had an equivalent increase in total.

From the first quarter of 2020 the statistics is affected by the region reform (including both counties and municipalities), which was put in force from January 1. 2020. The reform mainly affects the magnitude of job- and labor force flows. Some establishments were closed due to the reform, with the employees being transferred to existing or new establishments in the new municipalities and/or counties. Employees changing establishments will lead to increased job- and labor force flows. Hirings in the closed establishments will be defined as terminated and hirings in the new establishments will be defined as new hirings. In addition to the municipal and regional sector the effect is most noticeable for classifications where a large share of the employees works in the municipal and regional sector. The industries most affected are 84 Public administration, defense and social security, 85 Education and 86-88 Human health and social work activities. The reform will have an effect on job- and labor force flows throughout 2020.

In the first quarter of 2020 (2020Q1) there was a change in the method for estimating working hours. The change only affects the distribution of wage earners by different classifications. The categorical placement of wage earners is decided by their main job. The new method may cause a change in main job for people having several jobs and hence their placement as wage earners by industry, occupation, place of work etc. The change in method does not lead to significant systematic changes between groups, and in most cases the number of wage earners will be close to unaffected. In the first quarter of 2020 the change in method caused a net change of about 3000 wage earners by industry (17 groups). In other words, the industries having a decrease in the number of wage earners had a total decrease of about 3000 wage earners. Other industries had an equivalent increase in total.

From the first quarter of 2020 the statistics is affected by the region reform (including both counties and municipalities), which was put in force from January 1. 2020. The reform mainly affects the magnitude of job- and labor force flows. Some establishments were closed due to the reform, with the employees being transferred to existing or new establishments in the new municipalities and/or counties. Employees changing establishments will lead to increased job- and labor force flows. Hirings in the closed establishments will be defined as terminated and hirings in the new establishments will be defined as new hirings. In addition to the municipal and regional sector the effect is most noticeable for classifications where a large share of the employees works in the municipal and regional sector. The industries most affected are 84 Public administration, defense and social security, 85 Education and 86-88 Human health and social work activities. The reform will have an effect on job- and labor force flows throughout 2020.

The statistics are based on A-ordningen. The quality of A-ordningen is generally good. Nevertheless, some errors might occur.

Measurement and processing errors

Some errors might occur due to incorrect reporting of the information (measurement error). Furthermore, errors might occur as the result of data processing conducted at Statistics Norway (processing error).

There are indications of gradual improvement in the reporting to A-ordningen from 2015 to 2016, even though the reporting during the first year of A-ordningen (2015) is considered as being good. Therefore, figures are published from 1st quarter 2016 onwards.

More uncertainty is expected in the number of employees and jobs (employments) at a detailed regional level than at a more aggregated level (e.g., the country as a whole).

Not relevant

Sample error

Not relevant

Not relevant