Bureau of Labor Statistics - Explained
What is the Bureau of Labor Statistics?
Written by Jason Gordon
Updated at June 27th, 2021
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Table of Contents
What is the Bureau of Labor Statistics?What does the Bureau of Labor Statistics Do?Major Data ReleasesHistory of the BLSAcademics Research on Bureau of Labor StatisticsWhat is the Bureau of Labor Statistics?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is a Federal statistical agency saddled with the responsibility of collecting, processing, analyzing, disseminating and storing essential statistical data that reflect the economic position and state of the US.
Back to: ECONOMIC ANALYSIS & MONETARY POLICY
What does the Bureau of Labor Statistics Do?
As an arm of the U.S Department of Labor, the Bureau of Labor Statistics conducts research, compiles a wide range of statistical market, prices and productivity data. The data provided by the bureau are cited by businesses, academics, media, and others. They provide the most detailed and informative data on the U.S economy following from extensive, impartial and accurate research.
Major Data Releases
The Bureau has published several statistical data ranging from Consumer Price Index (CPI) which serves as a standard gauge for the cost of living; Local Area Unemployment Statistics (covering unemployment); National Compensation Survey (workers earnings in different sectors) to Household survey, a survey covering population and unemployment rates in the U.S.
History of the BLS
The Bureau of Labor Statistics was established as a subset of the Department of Interior in 1884 with the purpose of conducting research and compiling information about economics and labor. It became a part of the Department of labor in 1913 to date. It is important to note that economic policies rely on the Bureau's data. For example, the minimum wage was raised as a result of the outcome of the Bureau's research.
Academics Research on Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Disabling occupational morbidity in the United States: An alternative way of seeing theBureau of Labor Statistics' data, Courtney, T. K., & Webster, B. S. (1999). Disabling occupational morbidity in the United States: An alternative way of seeing the Bureau of Labor Statistics' data.Journal of occupational and environmental medicine,41(1), 60-69. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) annual survey of occupational injuries and illnesses (ASOII) is one of the most frequently utilized sources of data on national occupational morbidity. In 1992 the BLS introduced a new and expanded survey method that collects more detailed data on cases with days-away-from-work (DAW). However, to date, the BLS has not released any official publication that contains a comprehensive set of cross tabulated part-of-body (BP) and nature-of-injury (NOI) data. To improve the understanding of national DAW case morbidity estimates, the study presented here utilized a special data-call and data-reduction strategy to identify the leading ASCII BP-NOI combinations for DAW cases by frequency, incidence rate, and severity (median DAW) for 1994. The results indicated the significance of disability associated with discrete trauma (ie, resulting from instantaneous or sudden events) in the US workplace. While morbidity associated with back pain clearly continued as the most frequent type of disabling case, fractures at critical anatomical sites (eg, pelvic region, leg, shoulder) were responsible for the most lengthy disability absences from work in 1994. In some instances these findings were contrary to conclusions typically inferred from BLS publications.
- Workplace violence: an analysis ofbureau of labor statisticsdata., Toscano, G. (1996). Workplace violence: an analysis of bureau of labor statistics data.Occupational medicine (Philadelphia, Pa.),11(2), 227-235. Information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics analyzed here reveals interesting findings related to injuries resulting from workplace violence. The data show which workers commonly sustain injuries as a result of violent acts, where the violence occurs, and how it happens. The circumstances differ markedly between workplace homicides and nonfatal assaults.
- US department of labor,bureau of labor statistics, Handbook, O. O. (2004). US department of labor, bureau of labor statistics.Bulletin,2540.
- Leontief and the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1941-54: developing a framework for measurement, Kohli, M. (2001). Leontief and the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1941-54: developing a framework for measurement.History of political economy,33(5), 190-212.
- USBureau of Labor Statistics, Labor, U. D. (2017). US Bureau of Labor Statistics.Retrieved from.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics takes a new look at employee benefits, Fumkin, R., & Wiatrowski, W. (1982). Bureau of Labor Statistics takes a new look at employee benefits.Monthly Lab. Rev.,105, 41.
- An appraisal of the USBureau of Labor Statisticscost of living index, Mills, F. C., Bakke, E. W., Cox, R., Reid, M. G., Schultz, T. W., & Stratton, S. S. (1943). An appraisal of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics cost of living index.Journal of the American Statistical Association,38(224), 387-405.
- Comparisons between small business data base (USEEM) and Bureau of Labor Statistics(BLS) employment data: 19781986. Brown, H. S., & Phillips, B. D. (1989). Comparisons between small business data base (USEEM) and Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) employment data: 19781986.Small Business Economics,1(4), 273-284. The BLS versus USEEM comparison generally points out some major classification differences in the data sets particularly in the classification and growth of larger establishments. USEEM and BLS data generally agree as to the direction of employment growth over the 1978 to 1986 period. Differences occur in 7 of the 63 comparisons of employment growth but BLS attributes a greater proportion of growth to larger reporting units, USEEM to smaller establishments. BLS and USEEM data have concurring positive or negative growth rates for all size classes in the construction, wholesale trade, services, and finance, insurance, and real estate industries.