Appendix A: Sources and notes on indicators of the Fair Work Measurement Framework (Scottish data)
Opportunity
Table 7: Notes on sources and estimation methodology of indicators in the Opportunity dimension of the Fair Work Framework
Indicator:
Disability employment gap: Percentage point difference between the employment rate of people with a disability and the employment rate of those without a disability.
Source:
Scotland Labour Market Statistics (using Annual Population Survey data)[199]
Notes:
The disability employment gap reported is the difference between the employment rate of non-core or work-limiting disabled people and people who are core disabled.
Indicator:
Ethnicity employment gap: Percentage point difference between the employment rate of white people and the employment rate of people from minority ethnic groups.
Source:
Scotland Labour Market Statistics (using Annual Population Survey data)
Table 6.1.3
Notes:
The ethnicity employment gap is reported as the percentage point difference between the employment rate of those aged 16-64 from a white ethnic background and those aged 16-64 from an ethnic minority background.
Indicator:
Youth Unemployment rate: Proportion of people aged 16-24 who were looking for work.
Source:
Annual Population Survey indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics[200]
Notes:
The trend shows a consistent reduction between 2011-2019 (from 21.8% in 2011 to 8.3 % in 2019) and then an upward spike in Jan-Dec 2020 (13.2%), which can be interpreted as a possible effect of Covid-19. The unemployment rate dropped again in 2021.
Indicator:
Gender economic inactivity gap: Percentage point difference between rates of economic inactivity of men and women (16-64 years old).
Source:
Annual Population Survey indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics[201]
Indicator:
Economic inactivity: The proportion of economically inactive adults who want to work.
Source:
Annual Population Survey indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics.
Indicator:
Career progression: The proportion of workers who agree that their job offers good opportunities for career progression.
Source:
Job quality indicator tables, UK, Dataset – Office for National Statistics[202]
The indicator on career progression is drawn from the Annual Population Survey.
Notes:
Career progression is defined in this publication as:
Employee has good career progression opportunities if they “agree” or “strongly agree” with the following statement: “My job offers good opportunities for career progression”.
This uses data from the ‘JOBPRO’ variable in the LFS.
Indicator:
Gender imbalance in occupations
Source:
Annual Population Survey indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics.
Indicator:
Gender imbalance in industries
Source:
Annual Population Survey indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics.
Respect
Table 8: Notes on sources and estimation methodology of indicators in the Respect dimension of the Fair Work Framework.
Indicator:
Work-related ill health and disease: Self-reported illness caused or made worse by work per 100,000 workers.
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - Work-related Illness - Country and region of residence (LFSILLREG) tables (using Labour Force Survey data)
Indicator:
Working days lost due to ill health and disease: Average number of working days lost per worker.
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - Work-related Illness - Country and region of residence (LFSILLREG) tables
Indicator:
Stress, anxiety or depression caused by work: Self-reported stress, depression or anxiety, caused made worse by work per 100,000.
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - Work-related Illness - Country and region of residence (LFSILLREG) tables (using Labour Force Survey data)
Indicator:
Working days lost due to stress depression or anxiety: Average number of working days lost per worker.
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - Work-related Illness - Country and region of residence (LFSILLREG) tables (using Labour Force Survey data)
Indicator:
Workplace injury: Rate of self-reported workplace non-fatal injury per 100,000 workers.
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - Workplace injuries - Country and region (LFSINJREG) tables (using Labour Force Survey data)
Indicator:
Working days lost as a result of workplace injury: Average number of working days lost per worker.
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - Workplace injuries - Country and region (LFSINJREG) tables (using Labour Force Survey data)
Indicator:
Fatal injuries: Number of fatal injuries to workers (includes employees and self-employed).
Source:
Health and Safety Executive - RIDREG: Work-related injuries reported under RIDDOR by country, region, and unitary or local authority (Table 1). This source uses data from the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR).
Indicator:
Discrimination, harassment & bullying at work: Percentage of workers who report colleagues are rejected for being different.
Source:
Working Lives Scotland (WLS) survey Reports that draw on findings from the Working Lives Scotland survey.
For 2022: WLS 2022 report,[203] Figure 8: Psychological safety at work (page 15)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report,[204] Figure 7: Psychological safety at work (page 13)
Notes:
The percentage of workers who responded strongly agree or agree with the statement: “People in my team sometimes reject others for being different”.
Indicator:
Discrimination, harassment & bullying at work: Percentage of workers who feel if they make a mistake, their manager will hold it against them.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the Working Lives Scotland survey.
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, Figure 8: Psychological safety at work (page 15)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report, Figure 7: Psychological safety at work (page 13)
Notes:
The percentage of workers who responded strongly agree or agree with the statement: “If I make a mistake, my manager or supervisor will hold it against me”.
Indicator:
Discrimination, harassment & bullying at work: Percentage of workers who report having experienced discriminatory behaviour.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the WLS survey.
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, (page 26)
Indicator:
Access to flexible working: The percentage of workers with no access to flexible working options.
Source:
Calculated using the October-December quarter Labour Force Survey for 2016,[205] 2019,[206] and 2022.[207] Using the variable on ‘type of agreed working arrangements’.
The Quarterly Labour Force Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed through the UK Data Service.
Notes:
This was calculated as the percentage of workers for whom the question was applicable and did not respond to one of the following:
(i) flexi-time, (ii) annualised hours contract, (iii) term-time working, (iv) job-sharing, (v) 9-day fortnight, or (vi) 4.5-day week. Hence the sum of frequencies of responses of the following options: (i) none of these, (ii) on-call working, (iii) zero hours contracts.
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the population weights provided in the dataset. However, it is important to note the LFS datasets did not include a variable for primary sampling units (PSU) or strata.
Security
Table 9: Notes on sources and estimation methodology of indicators in the Security dimension of the Fair Work Framework.
Indicator:
Permanent employment: % of workers in permanent employment.
Source:
National Statistics on permanent and temporary employment published by the Office for National Statistics using Annual Population Survey data.[208]
Indicator:
Underemployment: % of workers looking for more hours, an additional job, or a job with more hours than their current job.
Source:
Calculated using January-December Annual Population Survey data for 2016,[209] 2019,[210] and 2021.[211] Using the variable on ‘whether the worker would like to work longer hours, at current basic rate of pay.’
The Annual Population Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed through the UK Data Service.
Notes:
This estimate is calculated as the percentage of workers who responded yes to ‘whether they would like to work longer hours at current basic rate of pay’. The percentage is estimated after excluding observations for which the question did not apply, and those who did not respond.
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the population weights provided in the dataset. However, it is important to note the APS datasets did not include a variable for primary sampling units (PSU) or strata.
Indicator:
Involuntary non-permanent work: % of workers in non-permanent work who could not find permanent employment.
Source:
HI11 Regional labour market: Headline indicators for Scotland dataset published by the Office for National Statistics.[212]
Table 10: Employment; Full-time, part-time and temporary workers: People
Notes:
Calculated as the ratio of temporary (non-permanent) workers who reported ‘could not find permanent job’ as the reason for temporary working, to the total number of temporary workers, including those who did not provide a reason why they were working on a temporary contract.
Indicator:
Involuntary part-time work: % of part-time workers who could not find full-time employment.
Source:
HI11 Regional labour market: Headline indicators for Scotland dataset published by the Office for National Statistics
Table 10: Employment; Full-time, part-time and temporary workers: People
Notes:
Calculated as the ratio of part-time workers who reported ‘could not find full-time job’ as the reason for working part-time, to the total number of part-time workers, including those who did not provide a reason why they were working part-time.
Indicator:
Involuntary self-employed: % of workers who are self-employed as they could not find other employment.
Source:
Calculated using the October-December quarter Labour Force Survey for 2016, 2019, and 2022. Using the variable on the first response given to the question on why the respondent is self employed.
The Quarterly Labour Force Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed through the UK Data Service.
Notes:
This is calculated as the percentage of self-employed workers who responded ‘could not find other employment’ as a first reason for becoming self-employed in main job.
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the population weights provided in the dataset. However it is important to note the LFS datasets did not include a variable for primary sampling units (PSU) or strata.
Indicator:
Hours of unpaid overtime: Average number of hours of unpaid overtime per week.
Source:
Calculated using January-December Annual Population Survey data for 2016, 2019, and 2021. Using the variable on the reported ‘actual hours of unpaid overtime’ during the reference week.
The Annual Population Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed through the UK Data Service.
Notes:
To arrive at an estimate of hours of unpaid overtime, we calculated the mean of values reported by workers who have worked at least some time of unpaid overtime in Scotland.
We also chose to exclude the observations of those who reported 30 hours unpaid overtime and more in a week, to reduce the effect of outliers on our estimate of the mean values.
Finally, as these estimates are based on workers who reported doing unpaid overtime, they should be interpreted as the average hours of unpaid overtime among workers who did unpaid overtime, not the entirety of the Scottish workforce.
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the population weights provided in the dataset. However it is important to note the APS datasets did not include a variable for primary sampling units (PSU) or strata.
Indicator:
Median gross weekly earnings (nominal): Median gross weekly earnings of employees aged 16+ on the PAYE system.
Source:
Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics.
Indicator:
Median gross weekly earnings (real): Median gross weekly earnings of employees aged 16+ on the PAYE system, adjusted for the CPIH inflation rate index.
Source:
1. Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics.
2. Consumer Prices Index including owner occupier’s housing costs CPIH Index 00: All items 2015=100, source dataset: Consumer price inflation time series (MM23)[213]
Office for National Statistics
Notes:
In the CPIH dataset, 2015 is set as the base year (=100). We decided to set 2016 as the base (=100) year for our analysis, thus expressing wages in 2016 prices.
As a result, for 2016, the indicators for nominal and real wages have the same value.
Indicator:
Real living wage: Proportion of employees (18+) earning less than the real living wage.
Source:
Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings – Tables (Table 5.1)
Scottish Government: Office of the Chief Economic Adviser[214]
Notes:
Estimates for 2022 are provisional
Indicator:
Gender pay gap: Difference between men’s and women’s full-time hourly earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings.
Source:
Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings – Tables (Table 2.1)
Scottish Government: Office of the Chief Economic Adviser
Notes:
Estimates for 2022 are provisional
Indicator:
Disability pay gap: Difference in median gross hourly pay of disabled and non-disabled workers as a percentage of non-disabled workers' earnings.
Source:
Raw pay gaps by disability, UK dataset[215]
Office for National Statistics
(using data from the Labour Force Survey and Annual Population Survey)
Indicator:
Ethnicity pay gap: Difference in median gross hourly pay (excluding overtime) between white and minority ethnic workers, as a percentage of white workers’ median gross hourly pay.
Source:
Calculated using January-December Annual Population Survey data for 2016, 2019, and 2021. Using the variable on workers’ ‘hourly pay’, and the categorical variable on Ethnic Groups in Scotland.
The Annual Population Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed through the UK Data Service.
Notes:
We obtained the median hourly pay of white workers and the median gross hourly pay of workers from all other ethnic group categories in the APS dataset. Then we estimated the ethnicity pay gap as the difference between the two median gross hourly rate values as a percentage of white workers’ gross hourly pay.
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the income weights provided in the dataset.
Indicator:
Zero hours contracts: Proportion of workers in zero hours contracts.
Source:
EMP17: Labour Force Survey: zero-hours contracts data tables. – Office for National Statistics (Table 4: People aged 16 and over on zero-hours contracts by region)[216]
Notes:
Reporting for the October – December quarter for each year.
Fulfilment
Table 10: Notes on sources and estimation methodology of indicators in the Fulfilment dimension of the Fair Work Framework.
Indicator:
Employer provided training: % of employers who provided training to their employees in Scotland.
Source:
Scottish Employer Perspectives Survey
Notes:
Scottish Employer Perspectives Survey 2021: Background Data Tables[217]
Table 62: Whether establishment has funded or arranged training for staff over past 12 months - 2021, 2019, 2016.
Indicator:
Workplace learning: % of employees who reported receiving job-related training within the last three months in Scotland.
Source:
Annual Population Survey indicator tables queried from Nomis: official census and labour market statistics, Office for National Statistics.
Notes:
Percentage of employees and self-employed workers aged 16-64 who received job-related training in the last 13 weeks.
Indicator:
Type of training: % of employees who received training both on the job & away, as a proportion of those who received any training.
Source:
Calculated using January-December Annual Population Survey data for 2016, 2019, and 2021. Using the variable on ‘whether employer has offered any training or education, on or away from job’.
The Annual Population Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed. through the UK Data Service
Notes:
This indicator reports whether workers who reported they had taken part in job-related training in the last four weeks participated in training (i) on the job only, (ii) training away from job, or (iii) both.
The indicator reports the percentage of workers who responded ‘both’.
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the population weights provided in the dataset. However it is important to note the APS datasets did not include a variable for primary sampling units (PSU) or strata.
Indicator:
Skills underutilisation (reported by employers): % of establishments with at least one employee with skills and qualifications more advanced than required for their current job role.
Source:
Scottish Employer Skills Survey
Notes:
Scottish Employer Skills Survey Tables.[218]
Table D15A: Proportion of staff that are under-utilised (i.e. those that have both qualifications and skills that are more advanced than required for their current job role).
Indicator:
Skills underutilisation (reported by workers): % of workers who report being overqualified for doing their current job.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the WLS survey
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, Figure 34: Qualification and skills matching (page 35)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report, Figure 39: Qualification and skills matching (page 31)
Notes:
The WLS survey asks respondents whether they feel they have the right qualifications for their job. Options for responses include:
(i) I am overqualified
(ii) I have the right level of qualifications
(iii) I am under-qualified
This indicator reports the percentage of workers who responded “I am overqualified”.
Indicator:
Skills shortage vacancies: Proportion of establishments reporting at least one skills shortage vacancy.
Source:
Scottish Employer Skills Survey
Notes:
Scottish Employer Skills Survey Tables.
Table C11A/C12. Incidence of skills shortage vacancies.
Indicator:
Autonomy/influence: Index of indicators that capture the proportion of workers who report having an influence on: (i) the tasks they do in their job, (ii) the pace at which they work, (iii) how they do their work, and (iv) the time they start or finish their working day.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the Working Lives Scotland Survey.
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, Figure 30: Influence over aspects of work (page 32)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report, Figure 35: Influence over aspects of work (page 29)
Notes:
The WLS survey asks respondents whether they have influence over the following aspects of their work:
“The tasks you do in your job”, The pace at which you work”, “How you do your work”, and “The time you start or finish your working day”.
For all questions, respondents choose among the following options: (i) “A lot”, (ii) “Some”, (iii) “A little”, and (iv) “None”. For each question, we report the percentage of workers who responded either “a lot” or “some”.
We created a composite index that captures all elements of autonomy at work in one indicator. As a first step, each indicator was indexed to represent the relative value compared to its 2020 value. Following this, the composite index was created by calculating the average value of the indices across the four indicators.
Indicator:
Problem solving: Percentage of workers who report that their job involves solving unforeseen problems on their own.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the Working Lives Scotland Survey.
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, Figure 32: Job complexity (page 33)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report, Figure 37: Types of tasks (page 30)
Notes:
The WLS survey asks respondents whether their job involves solving unforeseen problems on their own. Options for responses include: (i) always, (ii) often, (iii) sometimes, (iv) rarely, (v) never.
The indicator reports the percentage of workers who responded ‘always’ or ‘often.
Indicator:
Work intensity: percentage of workers who report that in a normal week, their workload is 'too much' or 'far too much'.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the Working Lives Scotland Survey
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, Figure 28: Workload (page 30)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report, Figure 33: Workload (page 28)
Notes:
The WLS survey asks respondents whether “in a normal week, is the workload in your job?” (i) far too much, (ii) too much, (iii) about right, (iv) too little, (v) far too little.
The indicator for work intensity reports the % of workers who replied options (i) far too much or (ii) too much.
Effective Voice
Table 11: Notes on sources and estimation methodology of indicators in the Effective Voice dimension of the Fair Work Framework.
Indicator:
Trade union membership: Proportion of the workforce who reported they were members of a trade union/staff association.
Source:
Trade Union Official Statistics, Department for Business and Trade and Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy[219]
Indicator:
Trade union presence: Proportion of workforce who reported others at their workplace were a member of trade union/staff association.
Source:
Calculated using the October-December quarter Labour Force Survey for 2016, 2019, and 2022. Using the variable on ‘whether unions are present in the workplace’.
The Quarterly Labour Force Survey data used to estimate this indicator were accessed through the UK Data Service.
Notes:
According to the Labour Force Survey user guide volume 3, this question was asked only of workers who themselves are not part of a union.
The indicator is calculated as the percentage of those who responded ‘yes’ to the question ‘whether other people at the workplace are members of a trade union or staff association’.[220]
To estimate the values of the indicators, we applied the population weights provided in the dataset. However, it is important to note the LFS datasets did not include a variable for primary sampling units (PSU) or strata.
Indicator:
Collective bargaining: % of the workforce whose pay and conditions of employment are affected by agreements between their employer and a trade union/staff association (reported by workers).
Source:
Trade Union Official Statistics, Department for Business and Trade and Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
Indicator:
Collective bargaining (reported by employers): % of workforce whose pay and conditions of employment are affected by agreements between their employer and a trade union/staff association (reported by employer)
Source:
Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Office for National Statistics.
Indicator:
Adequate channels for employees to communicate, influence and negotiate: percentage of workers who feel they have no voice channel at work.
Source:
WLS survey Reports that draw on findings from the Working Lives Scotland Survey
For 2022: WLS 2022 report, (page 5)
For 2020: WLS 2020 report, (page 3)