The concepts described on these pages are words and expressions used in statistics with a specific, limited meaning. In everyday speech the word may have a different meaning. In connection with each definition you can find information about which sets of statistics use the concept.
If you are looking for statistical figures, go from the definition to the statistics page.
Occupation
Data on occupations are based on the interviewees' own reporting in the Labour Force Survey. The occupation of an employed person is defined according to the occupation in the main job. The occupation of an unemployed person is determined according to the situation before unemployment. In the Labour Force Survey the occupation is classified according to the classifications of occupations used at Statistics Finland.
Statistics using the definition
Validity of the definition
- Valid
An occupation refers to the work the person does regardless of his or her status in employment (wage and salary earner - self-employed), education or the industry of the workplace. Therefore the occupation of a word processor operator working at factory is the same as that of a word processor operator working at office if their tasks require the same professional skills.
The following information has been generally needed for defining a person's occupation for population censuses or the Labour Force Survey:
- main type of activity / belonging to the labour force, i.e. whether the person is economically active / in the labour force or not
- job title
- tasks related to the occupation
- status in employment: wage and salary earner - self-employed
The unemployed are often classified by their previous occupation but also sometimes by their desired occupation (at labour exchange office).
Statistics using the definition
Validity of the definition
- 1 January 1997 - 31 December 2000
Source organisation
- Tilastokeskus
The occupation of the employed is determined on the basis of the occupation of the main job in the survey week. The occupation of the unemployed corresponds to the situation before unemployment. The classification is based on Statistics Finland's Classification of Occupations 1987.
Statistics using the definition
Validity of the definition
- 1 January 1987 - 31 December 1996
Source organisation
- Tilastokeskus
Source organisation
- Tilastokeskus
In statistics on wages and salaries, descriptions of occupations of wage or salary earners are based on field-specific titles of occupations, posts and tasks, and on the Classification of Occupations of Statistics Finland (Classification of Occupations 2001). The approximate number of the used field-specific occupational titles is 15,000.
In respect of the private sector the occupational titles used in statistics on wages and salaries derive from the nomenclature of occupations and tasks of the fields covered by the collective labour agreements of the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK, the nomenclature of tasks of Kirkon työmarkkinalaitos (labour market organisation of the Church) and the nomenclature of occupations of Näyttämöväen Vanhuudenturvasäätiö (foundation for pension security of stage and screen employees). The titles of occupations and tasks in the local government sector are based on the Local Government Pensions Institution's classification of occupations. The titles of occupations and tasks in the central government sector comply with the titles of occupations or tasks of letters of appointment or collective labour agreements.
The occupations in statistics on wages and salaries are classified basing on these nomenclatures of occupational titles by taking into consideration the employer sector, educational qualification and industry of the wage and salary earner. Field-specific titles of occupations or tasks are not published in statistics on wage and salary structures, where only the classification of occupations is used in describing occupations.
Validity of the definition
- Valid
Source organisation
- Tilastokeskus
Related concepts
The role of persons working at a similar job, which is based on the content of the work made for income acquisition purposes and in some cases on the education completed by the person.
In the employment statistics, the classification of occupations is based on occupational titles derived from various registers and given by employers to employees, which titles are classified into different occupational codes mainly according to industry, education, occupational status and sector. The occupational title is sometimes also called a job title, function or official title. Some of the occupational codes of the employment statistics (cf. industry-specific occupational codes with occupational titles) are derived already classified from the statistics on wages and salaries. Statistics Finland's national classification of occupations valid at each time is used for describing occupation. One occupational group can contain several occupational titles. On the other hand, the same occupational title can be classified into several occupational groups.
Occupations are produced for employed persons primarily based on the person's main employment relationship in the last week of the year. The data are collected from several different sources, such as the registers of employment relationships of central and local government, statistics on wages and salaries, and data collections from enterprises.
Statistics using the definition
Validity of the definition
- Valid
Occupation refers to the work a person does, regardless of his or her occupational status (wage or salary earner-entrepreneur), education or the industry of the place of work. So the occupation of a secretary working at a factory is the same as that of a secretary working in an office if their work requires the same professional skills. The professional skills and specialisation required in a particular job (occupation) have been taken into account in the classification of occupations.
Since 2004, occupation has been annually defined in the employment statistics for everyone belonging to the employed labour force and it describes the activities of the last week of the year. The occupation of an employed person is determined based on the occupation of the principal job. Occupational data are collected from several different sources, such as the registers of employment relationships of employer organisations, central and local government, statistics on wages and salaries, and data collection from enterprises. The occupation is classified based on the Classification of Occupations used at Statistics Finland.
Statistics using the definition
Validity of the definition
- 1 January 1900 - 31 December 2015
Source organisation
- Tilastokeskus
Source organisation
- Tilastokeskus
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