Sources and Methods: Labour Statistics
Volume 5: Population Censuses

France

1.Name and address of the organization responsible for the census:

Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (INSEE), 18 boulevard Adolphe Pinard, Paris Cedex 14.

2.Population censuses conducted since 1945 (years):

1954, 1962, 1968, 1975, 1982 and 1990. The present description relates to the 1990 census (held on 5 March).

3.Coverage of the census:

(a) Geographical scope

Whole country (Metropolitan France). Separate censuses of the Overseas Departments made at the same time are not used in connection with the census for Metropolitan France.

(b) Persons covered

All persons residing in France for at least six months, excluding foreign members of the diplomatic corps and foreign personnel of embassies living in a building having extra-territorial status.

4.Reference period:

A reference period has not been established. Persons surveyed were asked to indicate whether or not they were economically active on the reference date of the census, namely on 5 March at midnight.

5.Main topics:

(a) Total population, by sex and age: yes

Economically active population by:

(b) Sex and age group: yes

(c) Industry: yes

(d) Occupation: yes

(e) Status in employment: yes

(f) Highest educational level: yes

(g) Hours of work: no

(h) Other characteristics: yes

Re (a): The age is generally defined in terms of year of birth.

Re (h): Persons surveyed were also asked if they worked full time or part time.

6.Concepts and definitions:

(a) Economically active population

It comprises all persons aged 15 years and over who, at the time of the census, were either employed or unemployed, according to the definitions given below. The questions relating to economic activity were put to all persons, but answers were processed only for a sample of 1/4. The definition also covers professional members of the armed forces and conscripts.

(b) Employment

Considered as employed are all persons who, at the date of the census, have a full-time or part-time occupation, whether self-employed (farmer, craftsman, shopkeeper, industrialist, member of a liberal profession, etc.), or employed (worker or employee), or as an unpaid family helper (spouse, child or any other family member of a farmer or shopkeeper, etc.). Self-employed workers must indicate whether they have employees and, if so, how many (excluding apprentices, household staff and, in agriculture, non-permanent employees).

The definition also covers persons engaged in paid community work provided to the unemployed, persons with an adaptation or training contract, as well as persons who have been placed by a temporary employment agency and persons holding a fixed-term employment contract. It also includes employed persons who are looking for another job, retired persons who have taken up a new occupation, retired farmers who still keep up small-scale farming activities, as well as members of the clergy.

It is reported that the following categories are included:

  1. persons engaged in the production of primary products for own consumption;
  2. employed persons, temporarily absent from work;
  3. working students with a part-time job;
  4. conscripts for military/civilian service;
  5. seasonal or occasional workers, if they are employed on the date of the census;
  6. paid trainees who work in an enterprise.
Persons belonging to categories (i) and (vi) can be identified separately by means of questions used for this purpose. The same is true for conscripts who, for the first time, are included in the definition of the economically active population as the third component, after employed and unemployed persons.

(c) Unemployment

Considered as unemployed are all persons who, on the date of the census, were without work and seeking work. The question asked to determine whether a person is to be counted as unemployed is Are you looking for work?. In the event of an affirmative reply, the person must specify whether he/she has been looking for work for less than three months, three months to less than one year, one year to less than two years, two years or more. Students seeking work are excluded from the definition.

7.Classifications used:

Only employed persons in the sample are classified by industry, by occupation and by status in employment. Unemployed persons previously employed are classified only by their last occupation.

(a) Industry

Specific questions are asked to employed persons in the sample, concerning the address, name and activity of the establishment where they work or which they manage (for example: wholesale wine distributor, manufacture of metal framework, road passenger transport, etc.) to facilitate searches in the SIRENE database (directory of enterprises). For coding industry, 600 groups of the Nomenclature of Activities and Products (NAP) were used. Links to the ISIC-rev.2 have been established to the division (2-digit) level.

(b) Occupation

Specific questions are asked concerning the current or most recent occupation or trade (for example: electrical maintenance worker, lorry driver, household appliance salesperson, chemical engineer, self-service cashier, etc.). For coding occupation, 455 groups of the Nomenclature of Occupations and Socio-occupational Categories (PCS) were used. Links to the ISCO-68 have been established to the minor group (2-digit) level.

(c) Status in employment

Persons other than employees were asked whether they were engaged in their occupation (i) as employers or on a self-employed basis and, if so, whether they had employees (one or two, three to nine, ten or more), or (ii) as helpers to a member of their family in his or her work (farming, crafts, trade, liberal profession, etc.). Employees were asked if they were engaged in their occupation as such (in agriculture, only permanent employees are included). For coding status in employment, four major groups were used: employee, employer, self-employed worker without employees, and family helper.

8.Main differences compared with the previous census:

Conscripts, who had previously been excluded from the definition of the economically active population, were included in the definition in the 1990 census.

9.Publication of the census results:

The final census results were published in 1992.

The title of the publication containing the summary results is: Série Logement-Population-Emploi; that of the publication containing the 1/4 sample is: Série Population-Activité-Ménages.

The Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (INSEE), 18 boulevard Adolphe Pinard, 75675 Paris Cedex 14, is responsible for these publications.

The 1990 final census data are also available on diskettes, magnetic tapes and other formats on request.