[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 166 (Friday, August 27, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46958-46959]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-22336]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Bureau of Labor Statistics


Proposed collection; comment request

ACTION: Notice.

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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.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
ADDRESSES section of this notice on or before October 26, 1999. The 
Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in comments 
which:
     Evaluate 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;
     Evaluate 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, N.E., Washington, DC 20212. Ms. Kurz can be 
reached on 202-606-7628 (this is not a toll free number).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karin G. Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer. 
(See ADDRESSES section.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Proposed Collection

    The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments 
concerning the proposed new collection of the ``Job Openings and Labor 
Turnover Survey (JOLTS).'' A copy of the proposed information 
collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the individual 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.

II. Background

    The JOLTS will provide data on job vacancies, labor hires, and 
labor separations. The data can be used as demand-side indicators of 
labor shortages. These indicators of labor shortages at the national 
level would greatly enhance policy makers' understanding of imbalances 
between the demand and supply of labor. Presently there is no economic 
indicator of the demand for labor with which to assess the presence of 
labor shortages in the U.S. labor market. The availability of unfilled 
jobs (the number of job vacancies or the vacancy rate) is an important 
measure of tightness of job markets, parallel to existing measures of 
unemployment.
    JOLTS statistics will reveal structural labor market conditions, 
such as the effectiveness of job matching and training processes, 
implications of unemployment insurance and welfare, and deficient 
demand for labor.
    JOLTS statistics can be used for the following purposes:
     As an indicator of business cycles and their causes and 
consequences;
     As a basic economic indicator of growth, productivity and 
welfare;
     As a tool for considering the implications of unemployment 
policy, labor market policy; and
     As an indicator of inflation and wage growth.
    The ratio of the unemployment rate to the vacancy rate can be a 
very powerful indicator and reveal important information about how to 
effectively manage unemployment. As recently as 1998, Robert M. Solow 
in Proceedings of the British Academy noted that, ``. . . national 
unemployment counts exist almost everywhere, whereas vacancy statistics 
are quite rare.''

[[Page 46959]]

III. Current Actions

    The information will be collected once a month using Computer 
Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) and Touch-tone Data Entry (TDE). 
An establishment will be included in the sample for 18 consecutive 
months.
    During the first six months of data collection, the interviewer 
will call the respondent and conduct the interviews over the telephone 
using CATI. During these interviews, the interviewer will prepare the 
respondent for transition to TDE. The data for the establishment's 
final twelve months in the sample will be collected via TDE.
    The following data elements will be collected:

Total Employment;
Total Number of Job Openings;
Total Hires;
Quits;
Layoffs and Discharges; and
Other Separations.

    The reference period for the data are the pay period including the 
12th of the month for Total Employment, the last business day of the 
month for Job Openings, and the entire month for Hires and Separations.
    The information will be published monthly by combined North 
American Industry Classification System sector, at the National level 
and total non-agriculture level, by Census region. The data will be 
made public via press release and on the BLS Web site.
    Type of Review: New collection.
    Agency: The Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    Title: Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.
    OMB Number: BLS-1411.
    Affected Public: Federal Government; State or local governments; 
Businesses or other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions; Small 
businesses or organizations.
    Total Respondents:: 16,000.
    Frequency: Monthly.
    Total Responses: 111,440 (annual average).
    Average Time Per Response: 6 minutes.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 11,144 (annual average).
    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 ICR; they also will become a matter of public record.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 23rd day of August 1999.
Karen A. Krein,
Acting Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor 
Statistic.
[FR Doc. 99-22336 Filed 8-26-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-24-M