Literal question
Only for people 12 years or older
[Questions 20 through 23 are asked only of persons aged 20 and older]
21. Last week [the respondent]...?
[] 1 Worked for an hour or more (excluding domestic tasks) (go to 24)
[] 2 Did not work but has employment (go to 24)
[] 3 Helped with a family business or farm without payment (go to 24)
[] 4 None of the above
Interviewer instructions
Questions 20 to 31 are asked only of people 12 years of age or older.
Questions 21 to 23: Determine the activity status of the people.
In order to adequately establish the economic activity condition of the people of the household as "employed, unemployed, or inactive" it is important that you analyze the following diagram and know the main concepts and related definitions.
Activity status
Active economic population (work force)
Employed population
Worked for an hour or more in the last week
Carried out economic activities for money or something in exchange
Did not work but has employment
Worked or helped in the family business without pay
Unemployed population
Looked for work and had worked previously
Looked for work for the first time
Inactive economic population (not in work force)
Student
Retired or renter
People with domestic chores in their own home
Other situation
[p. 157]
Keep in mind the following definitions:
Reference week: the information that is collected about the activity status must refer to the week immediately prior to the interview (from Sunday the 22nd to Saturday the 28th of May).
Activity status: this refers to the classification of the population 12 years or older according to their participation in economic activities.
Economic activity: all activity or work directed to the production of goods or economic services, designed for sale or exchange.
Work: the participation of the population in economic activities.
Employed population: according to the previous definitions employed people are those that during the reference week:
a) Worked or carried out some economic activity for at least one hour, without counting domestic tasks of their own home.
b) Were found not working but who have employment (they did not work because of some incapacity, vacations, suspension or leave of absence for a month or less, strike, lack of clients at the premise or office, bad weather, equipment failure, lack of raw materials, or closure period).
c) Worked or helped in a family business without pay.
[p. 158]
Keep in mind that for the purposes of the census, the following activities are not considered work:
Having exclusively carried out volunteer work as a fireman, red cross worker, and other volunteers that go to the hospitals and do not receive pay.
Voluntary help in domestic tasks in another household different from one's own, without receiving remuneration.
Help given to a friend or relative as a favor.
Ad honorem labor.
Begging.
Professional internship without remuneration that the students are required to do in order to graduate.
Agricultural activities exclusively for self consumption.
Unemployed population: people that are unemployed during the reference week are those that did not work and did not have employment, they were available to work and took concrete actions to look for a salaried or independent employment.
Economically inactive population: this is composed of the collection of people that during the reference week did not form part of the work force, that's to say, they did not participate in the production of goods and economic services, they were not available to do so and they did not look for work.
Question 21: Worked the past week
21. Last week [name]...?
[] 1 worked for an hour or more (excluding domestic tasks) (go to
24)
[] 2 did not work but has employment (go to 24)
[] 3 helped with a family business or farm without payment (go to 24)
[] 4 none of the above
You must ask this question of all household members 12 years or older, applying the definitions and concepts previously explained.
The categories of the response are:
Worked for an hour or more: people that carried out some economic activity for at least one hour, without counting the domestic tasks of their own home.
Did not work but has employment: people that are without work during the reference week because of incapacity, vacations, strikes, or other, but they have employment.
Helped with a family business or farm without payment: person that helped for at least an hour, without receiving remuneration or profit, for some person that works independently or salaried in economic activities, in a farm, business, or company.
