Norway (1)

Title of the survey

Average hourly earnings in manufacturing.

Organization responsible

The Confederation of Norwegian Business and Industry (NHO) is responsible for planning and conducting the survey; The results are published by Statistics Norway.

Periodicity of the survey

Quarterly.

Objectives of the survey

To provide data showing wage levels and developments in wages.

Main labour topics covered by the survey

Earnings.

Reference period

One quarter.

Coverage of the survey

Geographical

The whole country, excluding Svalbard.

Industrial

Mining and quarrying, manufacturing, private construction and private land transport.

Establishments

Establishments of all types and sizes affiliated to the NHO.

Persons

Adult wage earners, excluding foremen and young workers.

Occupations

In private construction, data are collected on earnings in a number of specific occupational groups.

Concepts and definitions

Employment

Data on employment are not collected.

Earnings

The data refer to total remuneration of wage earners, before deductions for income or other taxes, social security contributions, etc. Total remuneration includes pay for normal time worked, premium pay for overtime and for shift, night or holiday work, earnings of piece workers, incentive pay and other regular bonuses, cost-of-living or dearness allowance, house rent, transport and family allowances, irregularly paid bonuses and gratuities, as well as the value of payments in kind. Excluded are payments for annual vacation, public holidays, sick leave and other paid leave. Data are collected separately for men and women.

Wage/salary rates

Not relevant.

Hours of work

Not relevant.

International recommendations

The concept of earnings used in this survey differs from that recommended in the international guidelines, in that it excludes remuneration for time not worked.

Classifications

Industrial

Data are classified according to the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) which is close to the International Standard Industrial Classification of all economic activities (ISIC), Rev. 2, 1968.

Occupational

Not relevant.

Others

Data are classified by collective agreement groups and by sex.

Sample size and design

Statistical unit

The establishment, defined as a functional unit which, at a single physical location, is engaged mainly in activities within a specific activity group.

Survey universe / sample frame

All establishments affiliated to the NHO.

Sample design

The survey is a complete enumeration of all members of the NHO.

Field work

Data collection

Data are collected by mailed questionnaire.

Survey questionnaire

Not available.

Substitution of sampling units

Not relevant.

Data processing and editing

Data are processed by computer. Survey data are coded directly on the survey questionnaire.

Types of estimates

Average hourly earnings are calculated by dividing total earnings paid to wage earners during the quarter by the number of hours worked during the same period, obtained through the Labour Force Survey.

Construction of indices

Indices of average hourly earnings in private construction and land transport are computed, on the basis of 1979 = 100.

Weighting of sample results

Not relevant.

Adjustments

Non-response

No adjustments are made for non-response.

Other bias

No adjustments are made for other bias, or for data affected by abnormal circumstances (such as strikes, etc.).

Use of benchmark data

None.

Seasonal variations

No adjustments are made for seasonal variations.

Indicators of reliability of the estimates

Coverage of the sampling frame

Complete, as the frame comprises all members of the NHO.

Sampling error / sampling variance

Not relevant.

Non-response rate

About ten per cent in terms of establishments.

Non-sampling errors

Not available.

Conformity with other sources

No comparisons are made with data from other sources.

Available series

The following series are published regularly:

History of the survey

The survey began in 1938. Since then, there have been no changes or revisions in the survey methodology, and none are planned for the near future.

Documentation

Statistics Norway: Statistik Månedshefte (Monthly Bulletin of Statistics) (Oslo Kongsvinger); the survey results are published about three months after the reference quarter. idem: Lønnsstatistikk (Wage Statistics) (annual, ibid.). idem: Statistik Årbok (Statistical Yearbook) (annual, ibid.).

Confidentiality / Reliability criteria

Not available.

Other information

Data supplied to the ILO for publication

Statistics of average hourly earnings of wage earners in mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, and transport, storage and communication, are published in tables 17A to 20 of the Year Book of Labour Statistics. Quarterly series of average hourly earnings of wage earners in manufacturing are published in Table 8 of the Bulletin of Labour Statistics.

Other sources of data

In addition to the statistics collected by the NHO, Statistics Norway carries out an extended survey for the third quarter of each year, which covers all NHO estblishments and a sample of non-member establishments.