Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service - StatRes (discontinued), 2013

Key concepts within the resource input measured in NOK:

Own production: Basically consists of the sum of wage costs, the purchase of goods and services and capital costs. Data for capital costs, i.e. depreciation and imputed interest as a result of capital ties, are not available for the Labour and Welfare Service. This element is not therefore included in own production for this area. The basis for the published amount is item 1-29 in the national accounts.

Wage costs: Includes all expenses that the enterprises have in their capacity as employer, including social security contributions and pension premiums. The starting point for the size is reported amounts in item 1-29, sub-post 11-19, ref. R101. This includes employer's NI contributions, but not travel expenses or the purchase of cleaning services or other outsourced labour-intensive services. Recognised wage repayments are deducted.

Purchase of goods and services: Includes the value of used intermediate products and services in the production. The starting point for the size is reported amounts in item 1-29, sub-post 21-29, ref. R101.

Transfers: Covers contributions to the private sector, i.e. item 70-79 in the national accounts. Labour and Welfare Service occupies a special position in the public sector, in that this agency accounts for most of the national public sector’s total transfers, principally because this agency handles payments relating to the various social security schemes. The starting point for the published amount is the reported amounts in item 70-79, ref R101.

Investments: Acquisitions and major maintenance work in connection with property, or major acquisitions of assets with a long-term value. The starting point for the amount is the reported amounts in item 30-49, ref R101. Any revenues from corresponding sales are deducted.

Contracted man-years adjusted for long term leaves: The number of full-time jobs and part-time jobs calculated as full-time equivalents adjusted for doctor-certified sickness absence and maternity leave.

Activities/services:

No. of persons in employment initiatives (year average) : The statistics on initiatives cover those on employment and rehabilitation initiatives, and are classified in three groups:

• Participants on ordinary initiatives
• Reduced capacity for work
• Other initiative participants

The group of other initiative participants was introduced in 2009 and covers participants who are not jobseekers and who do not have a reduced capacity for work. This mainly includes those with a need for sick leave follow-up, and also includes others who are not jobseekers.

Recipients of child benefit: Child benefit is given for children under 18 who are domiciled in Norway. In accordance with the EEA rules, child benefit is also paid for children who are domiciled in other EEA countries. This is applicable when the mother or father of the child works in Norway and is a member of the National Insurance Fund, but has lived in another EEA country together with the child.

Recipients of cash-for-care benefits: This arrangement was introduced for 1 year-olds on 1 August 1998 and for 2 year-olds on 1 January 1999. In order to qualify for this benefit, the child must not have a full-time place at a publicly subsidised kindergarten. According to the Cash Benefit Act, cash-for-care is payable for children aged 1-3 years for a maximum of 23 months, where the child does not have a full-time kindergarten place. The exception to this is for adopted children. Cash-for-care can be paid for adopted children up to school age, but the period of entitlement for these children is also 23 months.

Recipients of maintenance (December) : Recipients of advance payments of maintenance/child support payments. For recipients who have been granted advance payments, the advance is payable in the event that a child support payment by someone who has a requirement to pay such a payment is late or omitted, and in cases where the payment is lower than the advance.

No. of children under child support payment scheme: Advance payments of maintenance are payable for children under the age of 18 who do not live with both parents. The advance payment is means tested (as from 1 October 2003) based on the recipient’s income, civil status etc. One condition for receiving the advance payment is that the other parent (except in cases where the father is unknown) has agreed/will agree to pay such a contribution. The parent that does not live with the child has an obligation under § 67 of the Children Act to pay child support payments. This obligation normally continues until the end of the month when the child turns 18. Upon application, child support may be payable after the child turns 18 if it is attending upper secondary school.

Outcomes:

Recipients of unemployment benefit (year average): Unemployment benefit is paid to registered unemployed persons and partially unemployed jobseekers. Unemployment benefit may also be payable when a jobseeker is participating in an initiative.

Recipients of sickness benefit (as of 30 June): The number of persons receiving sickness benefit.

No. of persons with a reduced capacity for work (year average): This term replaced the term occupationally handicapped in January 2009. Persons with a reduced capacity for work covers the group that was previously described as occupationally handicapped, and other persons with a need for rehabilitation earlier in the sickness and rehabilitation compensation process. Persons who are considered for rehabilitation earlier (than before) in a sickness or rehabilitation compensation process will be subject to a needs assessment and capacity to work assessment, which will be registered in the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service’s case administration system. Of these, some will begin the rehabilitation process earlier than would have been the case without an early capacity to work assessment, and some will start rehabilitation at around the same time as is standard. Both of these groups will be registered earlier as a &“person with reduced capacity for work´´ and in isolation, this will mean that the statistics will be made up of more persons with a reduced capacity for work than previously and that the increase will mainly relate to persons who have not yet started an initiative and persons for whom it is still too early to make a decision on the appropriate rehabilitation.

Recipients of disability pension: The statistics cover persons aged 18-66 who receive a disability pension. A disability pension provides a subsistence income for persons whose earning ability has been reduced in the long-term due to illness, injury or infirmity.

Old age pensioners (OAPs): The old age pension from the National Insurance Fund provides an income in old age. The statistics cover persons aged 62 and older in receipt of the old age pension. In order to receive this pension before the age of 67, the person must have accrued enough. It is possible to combine the old age pension with work without reducing the pension.

Recipients of contractual benefits (AFP): AFP is a voluntary early retirement scheme for persons aged 62 and older who work in areas that have wage agreements and where AFP forms part of the agreement. The scheme was introduced on 1 January 1989 as part of the wage agreement between the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) and the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO), and at that time only applied to 65 and 66 year-olds within the LO/NHO area. The scheme was subsequently expanded several times and now covers persons aged 62-66 years in receipt of AFP. The statistics cover recipients in both the private and public sectors and are made up of five different AFP schemes.

This pension may be combined with work.

For 2009- 2012, NAV only publishes statistics on AFP recipients in the private sector and in Spekter. This is because NAV does not have enough recipients of the AFP in the public sector in the statistics for 2009 - 2012, but work is underway to rectify this situation. The situation arose mainly due to the lack of figures on new pensioners in the municipal sector, and NAV assumes that they have a deviation of around 5 per cent for the number of pensioners in total. This is due to incomplete reporting of new AFP recipients in the municipal sector.

Recipients of supplementary benefit: The statistics cover persons aged 67 and older who receive supplementary benefit. Supplementary benefit is given to persons who receive little or no old age pension. In total, any income and benefit shall correspond to the National Insurance Fund’s minimum pension.

Recipients must be domiciled in Norway in order to receive this benefit.

No. in receipt of basic benefits: The statistics cover persons in receipt of basic benefits. The benefits aim to cover the necessary extra expenses relating to illness, injury or infirmity. There are 6 different rates of basic benefits, and these are normally regulated on 1 January every year. There is no age limit for these benefits generally speaking, except for the benefit for transport, which is not given if the extra need arises after a person turns 70.

No. in receipt of auxiliary benefits: The statistics on auxiliary benefits cover persons in receipt of auxiliary benefits. The benefits aim to provide financial compensation for expenses relating to special supervision or care due to long-term illness, injury or infirmity. The benefits are only payable where care is provided privately. Auxiliary benefits are paid in line with standard rate 1 (no age limit) and 3 different rates for extra auxiliary benefits to children and young persons under the age of 18. In addition, there is a rate 0 for persons in receipt of benefits according to the old scheme for help at home.

Recipients of work assessment allowance: The statistics cover persons aged 18-67 in receipt of a work assessment allowance. This allowance aims to provide income in a transitional period where, due to illness or injury, a person has a need for employment initiatives, medical treatment or other follow-up by NAV in order to return to work.

Recipients of work assessment allowance who receives following up decisions: nav.no

Related figures:

Employed 15-74 years: This is the year average from Statistics Norway’s Labour Force Survey.

Unemployed 15-74 years: This is the year average from Statistics Norway’s Labour Force Survey.

Registered unemployed (NAV figures, year average): Covers all ordinary jobseekers who have not had income-earning work in the past two weeks.

Expenses are mainly classified according to the definitions in the IMF’s Government Finance Statistics Manual 2001 (GFSM2001). In some cases, the definitions are deviated from in order to give a more realistic picture of the resource use.