Labour Statistics Convention, 1985 (No. 160) - Hungary (Ratification: 2010)

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

The Committee notes the information and statistics provided by the Government in reply to its previous 2013 direct request concerning Articles 2, 3, 9 and 10 of the Convention. The Committee invites the Government to provide updated information on any changes made with regards to the application of these provisions.

Article 7 of the Convention. Employment, unemployment and underemployment statistics. The Committee notes that the statistics resulting from the continuous Labour Force Survey are made available to the public through the website of the Hungarian Central Statistical Office, including the relevant methodological information. The Committee invites the Government to keep the ILO informed of any developments towards the implementation of the Resolution concerning statistics of work, employment and labour underutilization, adopted by the 19th International Conference of Labour Statisticians (October 2013).

Article 8. Statistics of the structure and distribution of the economically active population. In reply to the 2013 direct request, the Government provides methodological information on the 2011 Population Census. The Committee invites the Government to keep the ILO informed of any developments towards the implementation of the Resolution concerning statistics of work, employment and labour underutilization.

Article 14. Statistics of occupational injuries. The Government indicates that all employers are required to report every occupational accident to the National Health Insurance Fund, which thus has information on accidents resulting in an absence from work of more than one day. The Committee notes that the collection of statistics of occupational accidents follows the methodology prescribed by the European Statistics on Accidents at Work (ESAW). It recalls that the ESAW methodology requires the reporting of accidents resulting in an absence from work longer than three days, while the Resolution concerning statistics of occupational injuries adopted by the 16th International Conference of Labour Statisticians (October 1998) recommends that statistics cover injuries causing an absence from work of at least one day, excluding the day of the accident, and fatal injuries. The Committee invites the Government to continue to provide the ILO with available information on statistics of occupational accidents derived from the National Health Insurance Fund database.

Article 15. Statistics of industrial disputes. The Committee notes that the ILO Department of Statistics received, through the chapter on strikes and lockouts of its annual questionnaire, some statistics on industrial disputes referring to the year 2012. The Committee invites the Government to continue to regularly provide the ILO with statistics on strikes and lockouts (number of strikes and lockouts, workers involved in strikes and lockouts, and days not worked due to strikes and lockouts).

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

The Committee takes note of the Government’s first report on the application of the Convention received in October 2012. The Committee notes that all parts of the Convention have been accepted by the Government (Article 16 of the Convention). Furthermore, the scope of the statistics referred to in the Articles of Part II is not subject to any limitation (Article 17). The Committee has benefited from a robust technical analysis made by the ILO Department of Statistics, which completed and updated (with information available to it, or from the national website http://www.ksh.hu) the already detailed information contained in the Government’s report. The Government regularly provides statistics in reply to the ILO Yearbook of Labour Statistics Questionnaire. The Committee encourages the Government to continue its collaboration with the ILO in this field and wishes to be provided with further information on the following points.

Article 2. Consideration of the latest standards and guidelines. The Committee notes that ILO standards and guidelines have been followed with regard to the collection and compilation of most of the basic labour statistics topics. It notes however that the Government has not specified which standards and guidelines have been used in designing the concepts, definitions and methodology for other topics. The Committee invites the Government to describe the standards used in designing the concepts, definitions and methodology of statistics on wage structures, and occupational injuries which may result in slight differences with the ILO statistical standards and the population census methodology.

Article 3. Consultation of employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee notes that the Government’s report was supplemented and refined following a request from the worker’s side of the National ILO Council to provide information on the manner in which consultations have been held upon the termination of the National Interest Reconciliation Council’s work. The Committee notes that the National Statistical Council (OST) functions as a special advisory body to the president of the Central Statistical Office promoting the operations of the official statistical service in connection with the compilation and publication of statistical data. The OST is composed of two members delegated by employers’ organizations, one delegated by each of the national economic chambers, one member delegated by employees’ organizations and three delegated by local municipalities. The Committee notes that the statistical data recording on the earning structure and distribution is still conducted in consultation with the social partners in the form determined in the National Interest Reconciliation Council. The Committee invites the Government to continue to provide information on the involvement of the social partners in the matters covered by the Convention.

Article 8. Statistics of the structure and distribution of the economically active population. The Committee notes that in October 2011 the Hungarian Central Statistical Office conducted the 15th census of Hungary whose final results were expected to be released in March 2013. The Committee invites the Government to supply the methodological description of the 2011 population census to the Office and the full census results once they become available.

Article 9. Statistics of average earnings and of time rates of wages and normal hours of work. The Committee notes that the Government has not recently transmitted earnings statistics to the ILO. It has not included in its first report any information on time rates of wages and normal hours of work. It also notes that no information was found on the Hungarian Central Statistical Office website about the continued compilation of time rates of wages and normal hours of work, last received by the Office relating to the year 2007. The Committee invites the Government to provide, in accordance with Article 6 of the Convention, statistics on average earnings. It also invites the Government to indicate whether statistics of time rates of wages and normal hours of work continue to be compiled in accordance with the Paragraph 4(1) of the Labour Statistics Recommendation, 1985 (No. 170), and if so, to supply the relevant statistics and methodological information to the Office.

Article 10. Statistics of wage structure and distribution. The Committee notes that the methodological information on statistics of wage structure and distribution was included in the Government’s report. The Committee invites the Government to indicate whether the methodology used in collecting and compiling statistics on the distribution of employees according to working hours is available.

Article 14. Statistics of occupational injuries. The Committee notes that based on the information available it would appear that accidents at work and commuting accidents, only resulting in more than three days of incapacity to work are reported. While the aforementioned time reference is in line with EUROSTAT’s methodology for European Statistics on Accidents at Work, it is not consistent with the International Conference of Labour Statisticians Resolution concerning occupational injuries. The Committee invites the Government to indicate whether it intends to adopt any methodological changes pursuant to the International Conference of Labour Statisticians Resolution that recommends that statistics on occupational injuries resulting in absences of at least one day should be collected.