MisInformation Exchange

UPDATE: Tell the BLS to keep collecting data on women workers

May 3, 2005
As we have reported in earlier blogs, the BLS announced on November 5, 2004 that they would no longer collect data on the number of women workers in the US as part of its monthly survey of 400,000 businesses, and set up a 60 day comment period regarding the decision. Heidi Hartmann, President of NCRW Member Center the Institute for Women's Policy Research, wrote the below letter when the comment period on this decision was recently extended another 30 days. We urge you to join her and us in protesting the proposed discontinuation -- and to share the information she has laid out here with others in the women's research community.
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Dear Friends,

I am writing today to recognize your important efforts to protest the proposed discontinuation of the women workers data series of the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey. Your comments have posed a serious challenge to the attempts by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to discontinue this data series and I appreciate your hard work.

I would also like to update you on the current situation and ask you for one critical final effort. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has announced an additional 30-day comment period, and we need to make our voices heard. While this may seem like a small issue, the CES data on women' s employment is an invaluable source of information about women's employment and unemployment.

As you may already be aware, the official comment period to the BLS has closed, and on April 18, 2005, the Department of Labor submitted a proposal to the OMB for review. This proposal was documented in the Federal Register, and an additional 30-day comment period was announced. Importantly, thanks to your hard work, the comments during the 60-day period totaled nearly 5,000 and were 9 to 1 against dropping this data series. However, in this proposal, the Department of Labor stated that "many [of the comments against discontinuing the women workers data series] appeared to be based on a misunderstanding of the CES data." The BLS has now decided that the overwhelming support can be discounted and to move forward with the proposed discontinuation.

Luckily, we have another opportunity to express how important this data series is. All comments must be submitted by Wednesday, May 18th to:

Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
Attn: OMB Desk Officer for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Office of Management and Budget Room 10235
Washington, DC 20503

I'd like to stress the importance of being accurate in your portrayal of the situation. To clarify, the CES does not include data on women's wages. All statistics on the wage gap and on women's earnings will continue to be collected through the Current Population Survey. However, the CES includes statistics on women's employment patterns across the business cycle. The BLS has asserted that the CPS will serve as a substitute for these data, but it is generally seen as less reliable than the CES data for questions of women' s employment and unemployment. Economists agree that data from the CES are essential for studying employment effects across the business cycle.

We encourage everyone to submit comments. Researchers and those who can get their organizations to send an official letter can make a special impact.

Here are a few additional talking points:

* Comments in favor of preserving the women workers data series exceeded those against it by a ratio of 9 to 1.

* The CES data have provided useful data on women's employment patterns for over 40 years (the series was first collected in January 1964).

* The CPS data are not a substitute for the CES data. While CPS data, which are collected from households, are useful for other purposes, the CES data, collected from establishments, are regarded as the most reliable when measuring month-to-month changes in employment.

* The gender disaggregation of data is included as part of Strategic Objective H.3. of the UN Fourth World Conference on Women Platform for Action. The objective specifically states that national, regional and international statistical agencies should "collect, compile, analyse and present on a regular basis data disaggregated by age, sex, socio-economic and other relevant indicators, including number of dependants, for utilization in policy and programme planning and implementation." The United States was represented at the Conference and the Platform for Action was adopted unanimously by the representatives of the U.S. and 188 other nations in September 2005.

* The BLS claims that the reason for discontinuing this data series is to reduce respondent burden. However, they offer no specific estimate of how much time or money eliminating this question would save.

* The New York Federal Reserve Board letter noted that now may be precisely the wrong time to discontinue the data series since the labor force participation of women fell much more than average in the last recession. (Please see their attached letter). If you have any questions about the CES data or the proposed changes, please feel free to contact me, Vicky Lovell, IWPR Study Director, or Misha Werschkul, IWPR/GWU Research Fellow, at 202-785-5100.

Thank you again for all of your important efforts,

Heidi Hartmann

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