Summary

The brief “Good Economic Policy Measures Require Data: What’s Wrong with Data in the Social Sphere?” addresses the challenges Ukraine faces in collecting and utilizing data for economic policy, particularly in the realm of social policy and employment. It emphasizes the importance of having comprehensive and accurate data, noting Ukraine’s early stages of aligning with European standards in social policy. The brief discusses the role of the State Statistics Service (Derzhstat) in Ukraine and highlights issues such as incomplete data collection and publication, exacerbated by the challenges posed by the full-scale war. It also mentions the necessity of harmonizing Ukrainian statistics with EU regulations, specifically within the context of labor market and vocational education data, to plan for economic recovery and reconstruction effectively. The brief underscores the need for improved data collection and analysis methods to enhance the quality of policy-making in the social and employment sectors.

Introduction

According to the European Commission, Ukraine is in the early stages of implementing European standards in social policy and employment. Interestingly, there have been some shifts in recent years. However, to develop quality policy, especially in the field of social policy and employment, comprehensive and correct data in a convenient form are crucial. Ukraine significantly lags in harmonizing its statistics with EU regulations, as stipulated in Chapter 19.

According to the European Commission, Ukraine is in the early stages of implementing European standards in social policy and employment. Interestingly, there have been some shifts in recent years. However, to develop quality policy, especially in the field of social policy and employment, comprehensive and correct data in a convenient form are crucial. Ukraine significantly lags in harmonizing its statistics with EU regulations, as stipulated in Chapter 19.

Meanwhile, most data could already be collected, particularly in the employment sector, including data on vacancies and vocational education, which are crucial for planning economic recovery and reconstruction. Therefore, within the scope of the project, we decided to focus on these issues.

EU Regulations

In terms of statistics, which are part of the Social Policy and Employment Chapter, several Regulations are defined that Ukraine needs to implement.

Vacancies: The EU mandated the collection of information about the number of vacancies to enable tracking the progress of the EU’s Employment Strategy. For collecting and publishing vacancy data, the relevant regulations state that data must be complete, relevant, accurate, timely, and comparable:
Regulation (EC) No 453/2008[1] of the European Parliament and of the Council of April 23, 2008 on quarterly statistics on vacancies and related matters:

• Commission Regulation (EC) No. 19/2009 of 13 January 2009 on the implementation of Regulation (EC) No. 453/2008 of the European Parliament and Council on quarterly statistics on vacancies, regarding the definition of a vacancy, reference dates for data collection, technical specifications for data transmission, and research.
• Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1062/2008 of 28 October 2008 on the implementation of Regulation (EC) No. 453/2008 of the European Parliament and Council on quarterly statistics on vacancies, regarding seasonal adjustment procedures and quality reports.

According to these regulations, data must be collected quarterly and presented by types of economic activity (according to NACE Rev.2 classification) and all professional groups. Seasonally adjusted data submission is mandatory. All countries must strive to collect data even from companies with less than 10 employees. If not feasible, relevant research should be conducted.

It’s important that the Regulation not only talks about data collection but also the urgency of providing this data to vocational training institutions and educational establishments (schools) for career guidance.

Training in Enterprises: In 2000, the EU aimed to become the most competitive knowledge-based economy, capable of sustainable economic growth and creating a greater number of better jobs. Lifelong learning was identified as a key component for developing and advancing a skilled, trained, and adaptable workforce. Data collection on this training is defined in the following documents:
Regulation (EC) No 1552/2005[2] of the European Parliament and of the Council of September 7, 2005 on statistics relating to vocational training in enterprises and related matters:

• Commission Regulation (EC) No. 198/2006 of 3 February 2006 on the implementation of Regulation (EC) No. 1552/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council on statistics related to vocational training in enterprises.
• Regulation (EC) No. 1552/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on statistics related to vocational training in enterprises.

The primary source of data on industrial training is a representative survey of enterprises employing 10 or more workers (by types of activity according to NACE Rev.1.1 classification). Statistical bodies may supplement survey data with other administrative information. The Regulation also states that data collection should not be burdensome for businesses and proposes several response modalities.

The questionnaire should be adapted for such distinctions: 1) enterprises that conduct training and those that do not, 2) various forms of vocational training. Variables for the survey are defined in the implementation Regulation[3]. The information that statistical bodies need to collect concerns policy and strategy issues regarding training at the enterprise, organization and forms of such training, the role of social partners, expenditures and time on such training, training for older workers, the presence of approaches to assessing the effectiveness of training, etc.

Data on vocational training in enterprises are annual, but the survey needs to be conducted every five years.

Common rules for collecting and publishing statistics within the EU are important for comparing data and developing aggregate data for the EU. Data are transmitted for publication to Eurostat in accordance with agreed technical protocols.

How This Issue is Implemented in EU Member States

EU members have predominantly approved relevant regulations and publish statistics on vacancies and vocational training in enterprises. Accordingly, harmonized data in the field of social policy and employment are submitted to Eurostat[4]. However, there are certain differences in data collection. For example, vacancy data are either administrative data from employment centers or business surveys, as allowed by the regulations. To measure the vacancy rate, data on occupied jobs obtained from the Labor Force Survey (LFS) are used.

There are three exceptions among the countries[5] regarding vacancy data, which have not yet collected data according to the Regulation. In France and Italy, public institutions are not included in the data for public administration, education, and health sectors (NACE Rev.2 sections O, P, Q). In France, the calculations only include companies with ten or more employees. In Denmark, vacancy statistics cover only business sectors (NACE Rev.2 sections B-N).

Eurostat’s website presents data from different countries on adult training[6] and vacancy numbers[7] across member states (except the three mentioned states).

What’s Happening in Ukraine Now

On the State Statistics Service’s (Derzhstat) website, in the Demographic and Social Statistics section[8], there are vacancy data by professional groups and types of economic activity until 2019. This data is sourced from Derzhstat and is not seasonally adjusted. During the full-scale war, Derzhstat does not collect much reporting, as explained by the Law “On the Protection of Interests of Reporting Entities and Other Documents during Martial Law or State of War”. For the same reason, population surveys, particularly on the labor market (LFS) and household income and resources, are not conducted.

Consequently, data are published sporadically and only in a few series. Currently, Derzhstat does not collect or publish data on vacancies and adult training and has not released relevant data collection methodologies. However, the Cabinet of Ministers Resolution “On Approving the Program for the Development of Official Statistics until 2028”[9] approved on September 15, 2023, envisages:

• Developing a methodology for vacancy observations in 2027 to implement Regulation (EC) No. 453/2008 of the European Parliament and Council of April 23, 2008, on vacancy statistics.
• To implement Regulation (EC) No. 1552/2005 of the European Parliament and Council of September 7, 2005, on statistics of vocational training and lifelong learning:
  • In 2024, develop a methodology for observing vocational training in enterprises: such methodology is currently absent on Derzhstat’s website.
  • In 2025, develop reporting and statistical documentation for observing vocational training in enterprises.
  • In 2026, implement the collection and processing of information for observing vocational training in enterprises.
  • In 2027, implement the dissemination of indicators of vocational training in enterprises.

It is also planned that in 2025, Derzhstat will develop a methodology for surveying adult participation in lifelong learning and conduct a pilot survey in 2027. However, data on vacancies in terms of professions and detailed types of economic activity are currently published by the State Employment Service[10], and data are already available for January-October of this year. However, these data are presented cumulatively, not quarterly, and there is a lack of seasonally adjusted data. It should be noted that these data have limitations. Although according to Article 50 of the Employment Law[11], employers are obliged to submit information about the demand for labor (vacancies) to the State Employment Service timely and in full, not all enterprises submit such data. This is due to both employers’ lack of trust in the State Employment Service in finding employees and the lack of accountability for failing to submit vacancy information. Although the State Employment Service collects data, Derzhstat currently does not publish it on its website.

Meanwhile, data on training in enterprises, which are mandatory for publication in the EU, are not collected in Ukraine. The State Employment Service collects data only on vocational training conducted for the unemployed. In general, a comprehensive adult education program has not yet been launched in Ukraine, and the recognition of the results of informal education is only in its early stages.

Next Steps

The government should amend the Law “On the Protection of Interests of Reporting Entities and Other Documents during Martial Law or State of War” and restore Derzhstat’s reporting. Derzhstat should analyze the possibilities of resuming the Labor Force Survey and restore the publication of vacancy data based on the State Employment Service’s administrative data.

Before developing the methodology, it is advisable to analyze data from the State Employment Service and private agencies, such as Work.ua, to consider existing information.

In business surveys, even before adapting methodologies for collecting data on vacancies and training in enterprises, specific questions on these topics can already be added. For data exchange, Derzhstat should already adapt its IT system to meet the technical needs of submitting data to Eurostat.

According to the Regulations, the European Commission covers the expenses of EU members for developing the methodology and conducting a pilot data collection on vacancies for three years and on vocational training for one year. It is worth negotiating with the EU about the possibility of Ukraine accessing such funding even before becoming an EU member.

It is important that the relevant indicators start being collected as soon as possible, possibly even before submitting to Eurostat. Thus, they will be important for assessing the implementation of the Employment Strategy, currently being developed by the Ministry of Economy.