The Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service - StatRes
About the statistics
1. Administrative information
1.1. Name
The Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service - StatRes
1.2. Subject group
03.04 - Social security and social assistance
1.3. Frequency and timeliness
Annual.
1.4. Regional level
National figures only.
1.5. Responsible division
350 - Division for Social Welfare Statistics
1.6. Legal authority
Statistics Act § 2-1, 2-2, 3-2 (Questionnaires/registers).
1.7. Legal document(EU)
Not relevant.
1.8. International reporting
Statistics Norway reports international statistics about the number of recipients of benefits to the European System of Integrated Social Protection Statistics (ESSPROS).
2. Background and purpose
2.1. Purpose and history
The aim of StatRes is to develop and disseminate statistics and indicators of a high quality on resource input, activities, services, production and results of public sector activities. Public sector activities in this context are limited to central government. StatRes is pivotal to the development of statistics on the public sector, and aims to represent a framework for further developing the statistics that cover central government.
2.2. Users and applications
The target group for StatRes are statistics users who have some previous knowledge of and interest in public sector activities and who, for a variety of reasons, have an interest or need for information about the amount of resources the public sector uses, what the input of resources provides in the form of activities and services in the different public sector activities and what can be seen as the results of the input of resources. These may be interested voters or taxpayers, the media, the authorities, public administration, researchers, industry organisations, school pupils or students. It is also a goal that StatRes should be able to give the authorities information that supplements the information used in the day to day management of the various public sector activities.
The benefit statistics from NAV (The Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service) are used among other things to monitor developments in the use of the schemes that NAV manages and as a basis for Proposition to the Storting No.1 (the annual state budget bill).
3. Statistics production
3.1. Population
Statistics Norway has developed new personnel statistics and new accounting statistics based on existing data held by Statistics Norway. Statistics Norway has also obtained external statistics from NAV about recipients of various benefits and persons on employment initiatives, as well as those registered as unemployed and persons with a reduced capacity for work. The statistics are supplemented with Statistics Norway’s own statistics for the number of unemployed and the number of employed.
3.2. Data sources
Benefit statistics: The data source depends on the type of benefit, but the principal data sources are the Central National Insurance System (DSF), NAV’s contributions register, the case handling system Infotrygd and NAV’s regional payment registers.
Unemployed person statistics and number of persons on labour markets initiatives: Information about unemployed persons is registered by case officers at NAV and by unemplyed directly on NAV. The information is approved in NAV’s case handling system Arena and processed in a dedicated data warehouse. The labour market statistics are updated at the end of each month.
Resource input measured in NOK: the data basis is taken from the Government Agency for Financial Management’s basic data for formulating White Paper no. 3 – the national accounts.
Personnel indicators: Statistics Norway’s register-based personnel statistics are based on individually-based register data from various registers. Information on employment conditions are taken from the Register of Employees (NAV) and the Register of Wages and Deductions. The Central Coordinating Register of Legal Entities and the Register of Business Enterprises provide details of industries and sectors for enterprises and underlying businesses. In addition, the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service's registers of persons on labour market initiatives, recipients of maternity pay and cash benefits, as well as Statistics Norway's register of certified sick leave are also used.
3.3. Sampling
The Norwegian Labour and Welfare Service is the state-owned part of the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration. The Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration also includes local authority staff. On January 2009, the Norwegian Health Economics Administration (HELFO) was transferred from NAV’s area of responsibility and placed under the Norwegian Directorate of Health. The population has therefore changed since 2009.
3.4. Collection of data
Personnel indicators: Data collection is done from several registers (see 3.2. Data sources).
Resource input measured in NOK: the data basis is taken from the Government Agency for Financial Management’s basic data for formulating White Paper no. 3 – the national accounts.
Benefit statistics and number of persons on Labour markets initiatives: These statistics are prepared by NAV. See point 3.2 above for more about data collection.
3.5. Control and revision
Resource input measured in NOK: Resource input measured in NOK: The basic data obtained from the Government Agency for Financial Management (SSŲ), which it uses to prepare the Report to the Storting (white paper) No. 3 - National Accounts, is checked against the printed edition of Report to the Storting No. 3.
Personnel indicators: For the three registers that are primarily used as a basis for Statistics Norway’s personnel statistics, control and revision is done in the following way: NAV carries out an annual check on its employee register. A selection of the employers who report manually are sent lists of all the persons they have reported as being actively employed. Errors are then reported to NAV. Statistics Norway checks that enterprises with several companies have a separate number for each company. NAV and Statistics Norway check that the employees are linked to the correct company. Statistics Norway also checks the employee register against the register of pay and deductions statements, the ARENA register etc. Some types of errors are also corrected directly in the basic data for the personnel statistics. In the case of StatRes-NAV the limitation of the population for each year is checked.
3.6. Estimation
Resource input measured in NOK:
This is calculated in the same way as for other areas of activity in StatRes, where the accounts data sent from the Government Agency for Financial Management forms the data source. As well as the information that is in the printed edition of Report to the Storting No. 3 - National Accounts, the basic data also includes information about which agencies have reported the various amounts and which sub-items have been used.
In 2007 and 2008 it was section 0605 Labour and Welfare Service in the national accounts that represented the organisational limitation of NAV. For 2006 the organisation of this area was different and the sections that then represented the organisational limitation were 605 Labour and Welfare Administration, 630 Aetat and 2600 Social Security. The expenses in these sections represent the majority of the published amounts in Own production and Investments. Also included are payments to individuals in the form of employment incentive schemes, redundancy payments, war pensions, cash support, child benefit and all pensions and other benefits in the National Insurance Scheme’s sections. This represents the majority of the published amounts in Transfers for Labour and Welfare Service (and Aetat and Social Security in 2006). The figures from the different sections, items and sub-items are summed up and grouped based on circular 101 (R101) from the Ministry of Finance. Entries for repayment of wages are regarding as wage reductions and not income in the way that the relevant amounts have been entered. When calculating the resource input relating to wages, Statistics Norway has therefore subtracted an amount corresponding to the amounts entered as repayment of wages.
Personnel indicators:
Contracted man-years adjusted for long term leaves are calculated by Statistics Norway as the number of full-time jobs and part-time jobs calculated as full-time equivalents adjusted for doctor-certified sickness absence and maternity leave. Contracted man-years are calculated as percentage of normal full time job (37.5 hours per week). This is done on the basis of working hours at the reference date, which is the third week in November in the statistical year, which is assumed to be representative for the whole year. The number of contracted man-years adjusted for long term leaves will not be identical with the man-years actually worked, since the statistics do not capture overtime, self-certified sickness absence, holiday or other deviations from agreed working hours other than doctor-certified sickness absence and maternity leave.
3.7. Confidentiality
Not relevant.
4. Concepts, variables and classifications
4.1. Definitions of the main concepts and variables
Key concepts within the resource input measured in NOK:
Own production: Basically consists of the sum of wage costs, the purchase of goods and services and capital costs. Data for capital costs, i.e. depreciation and imputed interest as a result of capital ties, are not available for the Labour and Welfare Service. This element is not therefore included in own production for this area. The basis for the published amount is item 1-29 in the national accounts.
Wage costs: Includes all expenses that the enterprises have in their capacity as employer, including social security contributions and pension premiums. The starting point for the size is reported amounts in item 1-29, sub-post 11-19, ref. R101. This includes employer's NI contributions, but not travel expenses or the purchase of cleaning services or other outsourced labour-intensive services. Recognised wage repayments are deducted.
Purchase of goods and services: Includes the value of used intermediate products and services in the production. The starting point for the size is reported amounts in item 1-29, sub-post 21-29, ref. R101.
Transfers: Covers contributions to the private sector, i.e. item 70-79 in the national accounts. Labour and Welfare Service occupies a special position in the public sector, in that this agency accounts for most of the national public sector’s total transfers, principally because this agency handles payments relating to the various social security schemes. The starting point for the published amount is the reported amounts in item 70-79, ref R101.
Investments: Acquisitions and major maintenance work in connection with property, or major acquisitions of assets with a long-term value. The starting point for the amount is the reported amounts in item 30-49, ref R101. Any revenues from corresponding sales are deducted.
Contracted man-years adjusted for long term leaves: The number of full-time jobs and part-time jobs calculated as full-time equivalents adjusted for doctor-certified sickness absence and maternity leave.
New statistics/changes to the following statistics for 2009:
No. of persons with reduced capacity for work
No. of children with child support
No. of persons with reduced capacity for work
No. of persons on employment initiatives
Persons on ordinary initiatives: Covers all ordinary jobseekers who at the time of counting are participating in ordinary schemes.
Persons with occupational disabilities on initiatives: Applies to persons who, for reasons of physical, mental or social disability, have difficulty in finding work.
Benefit statistics: For an explanation of what the various types of benefit involve see NAV
4.2. Standard classifications
The following Statistics Norway standards are used:
Expenses are mainly classified according to the definitions in the IMF’s Government Finance Statistics Manual 2001 (GFSM2001). In some cases, the definitions are deviated from in order to give a more realistic picture of the resource use.
5. Sources of error and uncertainty
5.1. Measurement and processing errors
Resource input measured in NOK:
The Labour and Welfare Service keeps its accounts in accordance with the rules of the central government’s appropriation regulations, including circular R101. The Office of the Auditor General of Norway carries out controls to ensure that the accounting is in accordance with these rules. Errors in the accounts data in relation to these rules are only expected to be marginal. However, the accounts data has certain weaknesses as a tool for measuring resource input in NOK, in that the capital stock is not capitalised and depreciated, and no costs are registered in connection with the binding of government capital brought about by the agency. Inadequate inclusion of these means that the indicators for own production are lower than is actually the case Such capital costs are however relatively small for the Labour and Welfare Service compared with the agency’s costs for payroll and purchase of goods and services. Omission of depreciation and imputed interest costs does not represent any great measurement error in this area of StatRes. Accounting according to the cash accounting principle instead of the accruals principle has relatively marginal consequences for the measured levels of the various amounts and is not therefore considered to represent a source of error.
Personnel indicators:
The data quality concerning the very shortest and most sporadic periods of employment will be poorer than for employment that has been reported to the employee register. For persons who are defined as employed only on the basis of information from Register of Wages and Deductions, the employment is not dated. This accounts for 1.3 per cent of agreed man-hours excluding long absences in the population in 2008. For some of these, information is obtained from other registers so as to put a date on the period of employment. For the remainder, information about amount of wages is used as a basis for determining whether a person is considered to be employed. There is thus a certain degree of uncertainty whether all Register of Wages and Deductions employment was actually active on the reference date for personnel statistics (third week of November).
Benefit statistics:
Women’s steadily increasing labour force participation has affected the statistics for certain benefit areas. This should be taken into account when using long-term statistics.
5.2 Non-response errors
Not relevant.
5.3. Sampling errors
Not relevant.
5.4. Other sources of error
Not relevant.
6. Comparability and coherence
6.1. Comparability over time and space
Figures from and including 2006 are presented in StatRes. However some of the statistics, including from NAV, may be found with longer time series. As from 2009, the following statistics are no longer published: Persons on ordinary initiatives, Persons with occupational disabilities on initiatives, Benefit recipients, Recipients of contractual pensions, Surviving spouses with pension/transitional benefit, Users of technical aids, Single, divorced and separated providers with support for child supervision not combined with pension/transitional benefit, Surviving spouses with support for child supervision not combined with pension/transitional benefit, Women with parental payments in the year, Child pension recipients, Persons with pension/transitional benefit as former family carer. The following are also no longer published: Recipients of rehabilitation support, Invalidity benefit for a defined period, Temporary invalidity benefit.
6.2. Coherence with other statistics
The statistics should be seen in context with Statistics Norway’s specialist subject statistics in the area and NAV’s own statistics.
7. Availability
7.1. Publications and other links
StatRes Central government performance home page
NAV, home page
7.2. Microdata
Not relevant.
