[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 17, 1999)] [Notices] [Pages 7912-7913] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 99-3876] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Bureau of Labor Statistics Proposed Collection; Comment Request ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments concerning the proposed revision of the ``Hours at Work Survey.'' A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the address section of this notice. DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the addresses section below on or before April 19, 1999. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in comments with:Evaulate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; Evaulate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submissions of responses. ADDRESSES: Send comments to Karin G. Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 3255, 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20212. Ms. Kurz can be reached on 202-606-7628 (this is not a toll free number). SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background It has been long recognized by experts in the field of productivity measurement and analysis that the appropriate measure of labor input for productivity statistics is hours worked rather than hours paid. The importance of this distinction was further emphasized by recommendations of the Panel to Review Productivity Statistics of the National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences. In the mid- 1970s, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) established a task force to review existing programs and surveys and to determine the most efficient procedure for measuring hours worked. Based on the findings and recommendations of that task force, BLS developed the Hours at Work Survey (HWS) that has provided a unique data series for assessing productivity since 1982. The HWS collects data for production and non-supervisory worker for each of the major industrial sectors of the nonagricultural economy on a yearly basis. Data are collected for the number of hours worked and hours paid in order to construct ratios of hours worked and hours paid, which then are used to convert hours paid data from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program to hours at work, for use in the development of productivity statistics. Hours at work exclude paid leave (holidays, vacations, sick and personal or administrative leave such as personal business, funeral leave, and jury duty) while hours paid do not. Productivity is better measured as the ratio of output to hours spent in production. The collection of information on hours at work must be done annually because of the cyclical sensitivity of productivity measures. II. Current Actions Ratios of hours at work to hours paid are needed to measure labor input for productivity statistics. The ratios of hours at work to hours paid provided by this survey are used to convert hours paid, which are based on data from the CES Program, to hours at work. The resulting hours at work measures then are incorporated into the BLS labor and multifactor productivity statistics published annually and quarterly. Based on results of a 1992 Response Analysis Survey (RAS), BLS identified some areas of concern that led to changes in wording, content, and format of instructions, and a new HWS questionnaire layout. The redesigned HWS is intended to improve the quality of the data in the survey by reducing errors due to questionnaires or from respondents and interviewers; to increase the proportion of responses obtained by mail; and to improve Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) follow-up data collection so that CATI data are more consistent with data obtained by mail. The redesigned HWS questionnaire has undergone some changes to reduce the survey's response burden. HWS data now are requested only annually. The questionnaire is respondent-friendly with instructions close to the questions, an uncluttered appearance, questions that better fit respondent data sources, and questions that result in higher-quality data. BLS is adding a RAS to the HWS to evaluate the quality of the data obtained from the survey, including the accuracy of the responses provided and the extent to which respondents have the requested information readily available. Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection. Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Title: Hours at Work Survey. OMB Number: 1220-0076. Affected Public: Business and other for profit. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Estimated Form Total number Frequency Total annual Average minutes per response total annual of respondents responses burden hours -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BLS 2000N.............................. 2,500 Annually....................... 2,500 1 Hour........................ 2,500 BLS 2000P.............................. 3,500 Annually....................... 3,500 1 Hour........................ 3,500 RAS.................................... 1000 One Time....................... 1,000 15 min........................ 250 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [[Page 7913]] Totals........................... 6,000 ............................... 7,000 .............................. 6,250 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0. Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): $0. Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget approval of the information collection request; they also will become a matter of public record. Signed at Washington, DC, this 11th day of February 1999. W. Stuart Rust, Jr., Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics. [FR Doc. 99-3876 Filed 2-16-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4510-24-M