Latvia

1.Series

Title:

Registered unemployment.

Starting year:

1992.

2.Agency making the initial registrations of unemployed persons

Name of the agency:

Nodarbinatibas Valsts Dienests (State Employment Service).

Type of agency:

Public service under a national authority.

Name of the national authority:

Ministry of Welfare.

Location of the local offices making the registrations:

In all administrative territories of the country.

Type of services provided/administered by the agency:

  • Assisting job-seekers to find jobs;
  • Assisting employers to find workers;
  • Vocational guidance;
  • Job-related training;
  • Other: organizing paid temporary community works; job Club services.

    Percentage of job-seekers seeking work through the agency:

    7.6%.

    3.The following information is registered about a person:

  • Name;
  • Sex;
  • Social security number (or similar identification number also used by other agencies);
  • Address of usual residence;
  • Date of birth;
  • Citizenship;
  • Nationality/ethnic group;
  • Educational/vocational attainment, with 6 categories distinguished. Links to ISCED have not been established;
  • Type of work (occupation) of past or present job with 10 categories distinguished. Links to ISCO-88 have been established;
  • Type of work (occupation) of job sought, with 10 categories distinguished. Links to ISCO-88 have been established;
  • Name of present or previous employer or work place;
  • Type of business (industry) of present/previous employer/workplace. Links to ISIC, rev.3 or NACE, rev.1 have been established (class level).

    4.Criteria used for inclusion of a person in the registers (R) and/or the statistics of unemployed persons (S):

  • Being without work (R) and (S);
  • Age (lower limit: 15 years; upper limit: 60.5 years for men; 58.5 years for women) (R) and (S);
  • Being resident in the country (R) and (S).

    5.Criteria used for exclusion of a person from the registers (R) and/or the statistics of unemployed persons (S):

  • Death (R) and (S);
  • Taking up residency abroad (R) and (S);
  • Commencement of a (new) job (R) and (S);
  • Commencement of military service (R) and (S);
  • Studying (full-time) or undergoing training (R) and (S);
  • Failure to contact the agency/service (R) and (S);
  • Refusal of 2 suitable job offers (R) and (S);
  • Receipt of a pension (retirement age) (R) and (S);
  • Inability to work (R) and (S);
  • Other: imprisonment (R) and (S).

    6.Definition of unemployed persons used for the statistics

    Persons able to work, who are citizens or permanent residents of the Republic of Latvia, are of working age, seeking a job, not running a business, are registered with the State Employment Service and who attend the agency at least once a month.

    7.Updating of the registers

    The registers are updated monthly.

    8.Unemployment rates

    Statistics from the registers are used to obtain unemployment rates.

    The sources of data on employed persons who are part of the denominator of the unemployment rates are the Labour Force Survey, Establishment surveys, Social Security Register, Official Estimates and the Population Census.

    Definition of employed persons for this purpose:

    Employed persons refer to persons employed in both the public and private sector. The number of employed persons excludes students of working age not gainfully employed. The calculation of the average number of persons employed is based on the results of the Labour Force Survey and regular statistical information.

    9.Type of statistics of unemployed persons produced

    Series 1:

    Reference period:

    Month.

    Frequency of production:

    Monthly.

    Descriptive variables used:

  • Sex;
  • Geographic characteristics;
  • Duration of unemployment.

    Form of publication:

    On a website (www.nvd.gov.lv).

    Agency responsible for publication:

    State Employment Service.

    Series 2:

    Reference period:

    Quarter.

    Frequency of production:

    Quarterly.

    Descriptive variables used:

  • Age;
  • Educational level;
  • Occupation;
  • Geographic characteristics;
  • Previous work experience;
  • Nationality.

    Series 3:

    Reference period:

    Year.

    Frequency of production:

    Yearly.

    Form of publication:

    On paper, for general audience;

    Agency responsible for publication:

    State Employment Service.

    Title and periodicity of the publication:

    Annual Report.

    10.Methodological information about the statistics

    Form of release:

  • On paper, for general audience;
  • In machine-readable form, on request;
  • On a website (www.nvd.gov.lv).

    Agencies responsible for the release:

    State Employment Service; Central Statistics Bureau.

    11.Comparisons with unemployment statistics from other sources

    Comparisons have not been made with unemployment statistics from other sources.

    12.Major changes since the start of the statistics

    There have been no major changes in legislation, capacity of the agency and/or administrative procedures which had a significant influence on the statistics.