Statistics on earnings and labour costs

KEY POINTS

• National authorities in EU countries and Eurostat cooperate to produce EU statistics, to compare labour costs and earnings.
• Every 4 years, Eurostat publishes data and analyses for each of these fields, with the subject alternating every 2 years, e.g.:
  • in 2014 - earnings
  • in 2016 - labour costs
  • in 2018 - earnings, etc.
• These are used to develop EU policies for businesses and employees and to analyse the EU’s growth and its economic and social cohesion.

Types of information collected

Labour costs

• Regarding the level and composition of labour costs, the information must enable statistics to be produced on:
  • the business or production unit for which employees work, especially the region where it is based, its size and sector of activity;
  • total annual labour costs (wages and salaries, social contributions, vocational training costs, etc.);
  • the average annual number of employees, including part-timers and apprentices;
  • the annual number of hours worked and paid.

Earnings

• Regarding the structure and distribution of earnings, the information to be collected must include data on:
  • the business or the local unit for which employees work, especially items such as the form of economic and financial control and the type of collective agreement applied in the business, etc.;
  • employees (sex, age, occupation, level of education and training, length of service, full-time or part-time, type of employment contract);
  • gross earnings and number of hours paid.

Data collection and processing of results

• The relevant national authorities define the appropriate methods for collecting the information and ensure that employers comply with the obligation to supply the information within the fixed deadlines. However, surveys conducted in businesses are optional if precise estimates can be produced from other appropriate sources.
• The national authorities must process the replies in a consistent manner, so that the results are comparable.
• The results are forwarded to Eurostat within 18 months of the end of the reference year.
• Details on how the data must be collected and the format in which they should be transmitted to Eurostat are laid down in 2 implementing acts (Regulation (EC) Nos 1726/1999 and 1916/2000).

Quality

• National authorities must ensure that their results provide an accurate representations of the situation in their country.
• After each reference period, they forward a report to Eurostat about how the regulation is being implemented in their country so Eurostat can evaluate the quality of the data.
• The content and evaluation criteria for the report are set out in Regulation (EC) No 698/2006.