Employee Benfits Survey (EB) eb.txt Section Listing 1. Survey Definition 2. FTP files listed in the survey directory. 3. Time series, series file, data file, & mapping file definitions and relationships 4. Series file format and field definitions 5. Data file format and field definitions 6. Mapping file formats and field definitions 7. Data Element Dictionary ================================================================================ Section 1 ================================================================================ The following is a definition of: EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SURVEY Survey Description: The Employee Benefits Survey (EBS) is an annual survey of the incidence and provisions of selected benefits provided by employers. The survey collects data from a sample of approximately 6,000 private sector and State and local government establishments. The data are presented as a percentage of employees who participate in a certain benefit, or as an average benefit provision (for example, the average number of paid holidays provided to employees per year). The survey covers paid leave benefits such as holidays and vacations, and person, funeral, jury duty, military, parental, and sick leave; sickness and accident, long-term disability, and life insurance; medical, dental, and vision care plans; defined benefit pension and defined contribution plans; flexible benefits plans; reimbursement accounts; and unpaid parental leave. Also, data are tabulated on the incidence of several other benefits, such as severance pay, child-care assistance, wellness programs, and employee assistance programs. Summary Data Available: Surveys of employees in medium and large private establishments conducted over the 1979-86 period included establishments that employed at least 50, 100, or 250 workers, depending on the industry (most service industries were excluded). The survey conducted in 1987 covered only State and local governments with 50 or more employees. The surveys conducted in 1988 and 1989 included medium and large establishments with 100 workers or more in all private industries. All surveys conducted over the 1979-89 period excluded establishments in Alaska and Hawaii, as well as part-time employees. Beginning in 1990, surveys of State and local governments and small establishments are conducted in even-numbered years and surveys of medium and large establishments are conducted in odd-numbered years. The small establishment survey includes all private nonfarm establishments with fewer than 100 workers, while the State and local government survey includes all governments, regardless of the number of workers. All three surveys include full- and part-time workers, and workers in all 50 States and the District of Columbia. Data available on LABSTAT include incidence of selected benefits and the average benefit amount for selected provisions, from all three surveys. Frequency of Observations: Data are annual. Base Periods: Not applicable. Data Characteristics: All percent of workers are in whole percents; average holidays are stored with one decimal place; average employee contributions to health care benefits are stored in dollars and cents; all other averages are whole numbers. Updating Schedule: Updates are available annually, typically in the summer following the reference year of the data. References: BLS Handbook of Methods, Chapter 9, "Employee Benefits Survey," Bulletin 2414 (1992). Contact for Further Information: Staff Employee Benefits Survey (202) 606-6222 ================================================================================== Section 2 ================================================================================== The following Employee Benefits Survey files are on the BLS internet in the sub-directory pub/time.series/eb: eb.contacts - Contacts for EB survey eb.data.1.AllData - All data eb.period - Period codes mapping file eb.series - All series with beginning and end dates eb.title - Title codes mapping file eb.txt - General information eb.type - Type codes mapping file ================================================================================= Section 3 ================================================================================= The definition of a time series, its relationship to and the interrelationship among series, data and mapping files is detailed below: A time series refers to a set of data observed over an extended period of time over consistent time intervals (i.e. monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, annually). BLS time series data are typically produced at monthly intervals and represent data ranging from a specific consumer item in a specific geographical area whose price is gathered monthly to a category of worker in a specific industry whose employment rate is being recorded monthly, etc. The FTP files are organized such that data users are provided with the following set of files to use in their efforts to interpret data files: a) a series file (only one series file per survey) b) mapping files c) data files The series file contains a set of codes which, together, compose a series identification code that serves to uniquely identify a single time series. Additionally, the series file also contains the following series-level information: a) the period and year corresponding to the first data observation b) the period and year corresponding to the most recent data observation. The mapping files are definition files that contain explanatory text descriptions that correspond to each of the various codes contained within each series identification code. The data file contains one line of data for each observation period pertaining to a specific time series. Each line contains a reference to the following: a) a series identification code b) year in which data is observed c) period for which data is observed (M13, Q05, and S03 indicate annual averages) d) value e) footnote code (if available) ================================================================================= Section 4 ================================================================================= File Structure and Format: The following represents the file format used to define eb.series. Note that the Field Numbers are for reference only; they do not exist in the database. Data files are in ASCII text format. Data elements are separated by tabs; the first record of each file contains the column headers for the data elements stored in each field. Each record ends with a new line character. Field #/Data Element Length Value(Example) 1. series_id 17 EBU401KINC0000ML 2. title_code 11 401KINC0000 3. type_code 2 ML 4. begin_year 4 1985 5. begin_period 3 A01 6. end_year 4 1997 7. end_period 3 A01 The series_id (EBU401KINC0000SL) can be broken out into: Code Value survey abbreviation = EB seasonal (code) = U title_code = 401KINC0000 type_code = SL ================================================================================== Section 5 ================================================================================== File Structure and Format: The following represents the file format used to define each data file. Note that the field numbers are for reference only; they do not exist in the database. Data files are in ASCII text format. Data elements are separated by tabs; the first record of each file contains the column headers for the data elements stored in each field. Each record ends with a new line character. File Name: eb.data.1.AllData The above-named data file has the following format: Field #/Data Element Length Value(Example) 1. series_id 17 EBU401KINC0000SL 2. year 4 1985 3. period 3 A01 4. value 12 26 5. footnote_codes 10 It varies The series_id (EBU401KINC0000SL) can be broken out into: Code Value survey abbreviation = EB seasonal (code) = U title_code = 401KINC0000 type_code = SL ================================================================================ Section 6 File Structure and Format: The following represents the file format used to define each mapping file. Note that the field numbers are for reference only; they do not exist in the database. Mapping files are in ASCII text format. Data elements are separated by tabs; the first record of each file contains the column headers for the data elements stored in each field. Each record ends with a new line character. File Name: eb.period Field #/Data Element Length Value(Example) 1. period 3 A01 2. period_abbr 5 ANN 3. period_name 20 Text File Name: eb.title Field #/Data Element Length Value(Example) 1. title_code 11 401KINC0000 2. title_name 100 Text File Name: eb.type Field #/Data Element Length Value(Example) 1. type_code 2 AP 2. type_name 50 Text ========================================================================================= Section 7 ========================================================================================= EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SURVEY DATABASE ELEMENTS Data Element Length Value(Example) Description begin_period 3 A01=Annual Identifies the first data observation within the first year for which data is available for a given time series. begin_year 4 YYYY Identifies first year for which Ex: 1992 data is available for a given time series. end_period 3 A01=Annual Identifies last data observation within the last year for which data is available for a given time series. end_year 4 YYYY Identifies last year for which Ex: 1997 data is available for a given time series. footnote_codes 10 It varies Identifies footnotes for the data series. period 3 A01=Annual Identifies period for which data is observed. period_abbr 5 JAN Abbreviation of period name. period_name 20 Text Full name of period to which Ex: January the data observation refers. series_id 17 EBU401KINC0000SL Code identifying the specific series. title_code 11 Title Code identifying title of identifier data series. Ex: LUNCHINC000 title_name 100 Text Name of series title. Ex: Incidence of paid lunch time type_code 2 Type identifier Code identifying type of ML=Med/Lge private establishment. SM=Small private SL=State/Local government type_name 50 Text Name of type of establishment. value 12 Data value Data value for series. year 4 YYYY Identifies year of observation. Ex: 1990