Download OECD System of Unit Labour Cost Indicators

Enhancement of
OECD Unit Labour Cost
3 December 2010
Eun-Pyo HONG and Frédéric PARROT
Competitiveness Indicators Unit
Contents
•Objectives
•Definition
•Comparison with existing ULCs
•Data availability and Timeliness
•Methods to cope with missing data
•EEQ UCLs
•Remaining issues and challenges
Objectives
Objectives:
• to produce more timely and comparable seasonally adjusted quarterly
ULCs for total economy for 35 countries (i.e. 33 member countries and
two accession countries, Estonia and Russian Federation)
=> Early Estimates of Quarterly ULCs (EEQ ULCs)
OECD System of Unit Labour Cost and Related Indicators
• About 17,000 annual and quarterly series since 2007 (Most MSs and
selected non-MSs) for 8 economic activities:
ULCs; Total labour cost, and output; Labour productivity; Labour
compensation per unit labour input; Exchange rate adjusted ULCs; Real
ULC or Income labour share; and PPP adjusted labour compensation per
unit labour input
8 economic activities: Total economy, Manufacturing, Industry, Construction ,
Trade, transport and communication, Finance and business services,
Market services, and Business sector excluding agriculture
Definition of ULC
ULC = total labour cost / output
= (compensation of employees/value added)*self employment ratio
where self employment ratio
= hours worked for total employment/hours worked for employees; or
= total employment / number of employees (in case of missing data)
Note:
1. Proxies for other variables are also in use, e.g.:
•Wages and salaries for compensation of employees or
•GDP expenditure for value added
2. ULC = Labour compensation per unit of labour input / Labour
productivity
Comparison with existing ULCs
EEQ ULCs (SA)
National data Seasonally adjusted national
in use
component series
Method
Indirect method
Existing quarterly ULCs (SA)
Raw national component series
Direct method: SA ULCs is compiled
from raw benchmarked (to their
annual data) ULCs
Coverage
Total economy only (can be extended Total economy and 7 other economic
to other economic activities)
activities
Timeliness 75 days after reference quarters
> 100 days after reference quarters
Comparability more comparable with ULCs of ECB Less comparable
Data availability
Data sources:
•QNA database and
•Other databases (e.g. MEI) in case of missing information
Data availability in QNA database: 6 groups
•Group 1: all necessary data are available - 13 EU countries (AUT, CZE,
DNK, EST, FIN, FRA, DEU, IRL, ITA, NLD, POL, SVN, ESP);
•Group 2: some SA CoE and/or SA HW are missing - 4 countries (HUN,
NOR, SVN, SWE);
•Group 3: most raw series are missing - 1 country (PRT);
•Group 4: complete set of HW (raw and SA) is missing - 10 countries
(AUS, CAN, ISR, JPN, USA, BEL, CHE, GBR, GRC, LUX);
•Group 5: both CoE (raw and SA) and HW (raw and SA) are missing – 2
countries (KOR, NZL);
•Group 6: insufficient information for EEQ ULC compilation - 5 countries
(CHL, MEX, RUS, ISL, TUR).
Timeliness
EEQ ULCs can be compiled at T+75 days for 25 countries:
• T+85 days or more: IRL, LUX, NLD, NZL, POL;
• Not possible: CHL, ISL, MEX, RUS, TUR
Value added:
• except IRL, LUX, NLD, NZL
Compensation of employees
• except IRL, LUX, NLD, POL
Hours worked or employment
• except GBR, IRL, LUX, NLD, POL
Data availability and timeliness
Country
AUS
AUT
BEL
CAN
CHE
CHL
CZE
DEU
DNK
ESP
EST
FIN
FRA
GBR
GRC
HUN
IRL
ISL
ISR
ITA
JPN
KOR
LUX
MEX
NLD
NOR
NZL
POL
PRT
RUS
SVK
SVN
SWE
TUR
USA
GDP
QVA
SA
NSA
NSA
t+62
t+62
t+62
t+62
t+45/t+71 t+45/t+71 t+45/t+71
t+45
t+45
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+60
t+60
t+63
t+63
t+63
t+76
QCoE
SA
t+62
t+45/t+71
t+69
t+60
t+76
NSA
t+45
t+69
QNA
EMP
SA
t+45
t+69
NSA
t+45
t+69
EY
SA
t+45
t+69
HOURS EMP
NSA
SA
t+71
t+71
HOURS EY
NSA
SA
t+71
Q110
MEI
EMP LFS
EY LFS
NSA
SA
NSA
SA
t+35/t+67t+35/t+67t+35/t+67t+35/t+67
t+71
Q110
till 2006
t+45
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+45
t+55
t+55
t+55
t+55
t+45
t+45
t+45
t+45
t+55
t+55
t+55
t+55
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+60
t+45
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+57
t+45
t+70
t+76
t+70
t+70, Total
t+70
t+70
t+70
t+70
t+70
t+70
t+70
t+70
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+45/t+85 t+45/t+85 t+45/t+85 t+69/t+85 t+69/t+85 t+45/t+85 t+45/t+85 t+45/t+85 t+45/t+85 t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+23
t+23/t+62
t+58
Q409
Q409
Q409
Q409
t+45
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+45
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+69
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+85
t+65
t+49
t+49
t+49
Q110
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+45/t+71
t+71
t+71
t+71
t+71
t+71
t+71
t+71
t+71 t+71, excl. t+71,
D
excl. t+71,
D
excl. t+71,
D
excl. D
t+50/t+71 t+50/t+71 t+50/t+71 t+50/t+71 t+50/t+71
t+45
t+45/t+65
t+45
Q110
Q110
Q110
Q110
Q110
Q409
Q409
Q409
Q409
t+55
t+55
t+55
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+50
t+84
t+84
t+84
t+55
t+60
t+60
Q409
t+55 total
Q409
Q409
Q409
Q409
t+45/t+70
t+70
Q110 (Eurostat)
t+70 excl. D
t+70 excl. D
t+70 excl. D
t+70 excl. D
Q309
Q309
Q309
Q208
Q208
t+45
t+63
t+63
t+45
t+45
t+63
t+63
t+63
t+63
t+63
t+63
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
t+68
Q110
Q110
t+45
t+50/t+70
t+70
t+70
t+60/t+70
t+60/t+70
t+45/t+70
t+30 Total, tF+45/t+70
t+76
t+76
t+45/t+57
t+45
Q409
t+10
t+62
t+35
Q409
t+10
t+62
t+35
Q409
t+10
BS(5/7)
Q409
t+10
t+35
t+35
t+35
t+35
t+55
t+55
t+55
July
t+55
t+64
July
July
July
t+55
e t+33
t+35
t+65
t+55
e t+64
t+35
t+65
t+55
t+55
t+65
t+65
t+35
t+35
t+35
t+35
t+35
t+35
July
t+35
t+35
t+67
t+67
t+67
t+55
t+35
t+67
t+67
t+67
t+67
t+55
t+35
t+67
t+35
t+67
t+10
t+35
t+67
t+10
BS(5/7)
t+67
t+67
t+67
t+55
t+67
t+67
t+67
t+55
t+35
t+67
BS
t+35
t+67
BS
Methods to cope with missing data (1)
•UK: Labour Force Survey data are used instead of QNA
employment data
•Belgium, Greece and Slovenia: QNA employment & employees
in persons used instead of QNA hours worked
•Hungary: ULC Unit performed SA on QNA hours worked
•Norway and Sweden: ULC Unit performed SA on QNA CoE and
QNA employees' hours worked
•Australia and Canada: LFS SA Civilian employment & employees
used for QNA labour input
•Japan: GDP was used for constant price value added and also
used LFS Civilian employment & employees (SA by Labour Unit)
•USA: LFS SA Civilian employment & BS SA Employees used for
QNA labour input.
•Korea: National quarterly proxy earnings series for QNA CoE; LFS
civilian employment & employees; SA by ULC Unit of national
quarterly earnings series, nsa
Methods to cope with missing data (2)
•Israel: QNA chained volume GDP by expenditure used instead of
unavailable constant price gross value added; QNA CoE, nsa
available until 2010Q1, 2010Q2 estimated by ULC Unit and SA by
ULC unit until 2010Q2; QNA employment & employees in persons
•New Zealand: National quarterly proxy earnings series for QNA
CoE; LFS civilian employment & employees; SA by ULC unit of
national quarterly earnings series, nsa
•Switzerland: 2010Q2 for BS employees has been estimated by
ULC Unit; then SA by ULC unit until 2010Q2; LFS Civilian
employment used for QNA labour input
•Portugal: CoE total economy from Eurostat until 2010Q1 and that
of 2010Q2 was estimated by ULC Unit and SA by ULC Unit until
2010Q2
EEQ ULCs (1)
(Percentage change on the previous quarter, Seasonally Adjusted, Total economy)
EEQ ULCs (2)
(Broken down by Labour productivity and Labour compensation per unit of labour
input 2010 Q2 - percentage change, SA, Total economy)
Issues and challenges
• Availability of:
–
–
–
–
quarterly hours worked for all countries except 13 EU member countries
seasonally adjusted data at NSOs: direct vs. indirect SA
quarterly VA and CoE for some countries
Timely data for some countries
• Development of ULCs for:
– all new OECD MSs, i.e. Chile and Israel
– all G20 countries, i.e. BRIICS, Saudi Arabia and Argentina
– quarterly media release
• Creation of proper procedures and database to facilitate
production and dissemination of EEQ ULC