Hungarian Central Statistical Office (HCSO)

Statistics Directorate, Quality of Life Statistics Department, Earnings Statistics Section 

Postal address: H-1525 Budapest P.O.B. 51, Hungary

In 2023 the STS labour data were generated from the quarterly Institutional labour data survey of HCSO. The quarterly institutional survey was introduced in January 2019, parallel with the elimination of the monthly institutional survey which served as the source of STS data until the end of 2018. The reference population, the sampling and surveying methodology and the definition of the variables however, remained the same as in the monthly survey.

The quarterly survey provides information on the number of employees and self-employed persons, hours worked by employees, earnings and the gross wages and salaries in all NACE sections in Hungary broken down by full time and part time as well as manual and non-manual staff categories.

The scope of statistical observation includes all corporations with more than 49 employees, while corporations with 5-49 employees are observed on a representative basis.

The sampling frame arises from a fixed file extracted from the Business Register. Designated non-profit institutions - organizations that are important with respect to employment - supply data as well.

Budgetary institutions are observed on a full-scope basis: the data of the central payroll system are taken over from the Hungarian State Treasury, while the data of all other observed budgetary institutions are collected through the quarterly survey.

Under STS, as of 2021, following EBS, we provide data on changes in the number of employees and self-employed persons, wages and salaries and hours worked by employees with the base year of 2015 instead of values of total amounts.

Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE Rev. 2).

The survey covers all NACE Rev. 2 sections including those that are required by STS. Size classes covered include businesses with at least 4 employees, nonprofit organizations significant in respect of employment and all budgetary organizations.

As regards the definitions of variables used in practice of the HCSO the Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197 is the standard source.

The “number of employees and self-employed persons” is defined as the total number of persons who work in the observation unit (including employees, working owners, partners working regularly in the unit and unpaid family workers), as well as persons who work outside the unit who belong to it and are paid by it (sales representatives, delivery personnel, repair and maintenance teams). It includes persons absent for a short period without wages and salaries (maximum of about 1 month for sick leave, unpaid leave and special leave) and also those on strike. However, it does not include those absent for an indefinite period (such as employees on maternity leave or on sick leave for longer than one month).

The following persons are not covered:

- casual workers;

- owners or members of corporations who do not participate in the activities of the business;

- contractors on commission contract.

Hours worked by employees are defined as the total number of hours actually worked number of employees and self-employed persons, including ‘idle time’ spent and accounted for at the workplace. The latter covers all hours of working time spent at the workplace during which no work was done owing to for example a shortage of raw materials, occasional lack of power, machine stoppages, accidents etc., but which was paid in accordance with the labour contract. The time of journey from one workplace to another and ‘idle time’ owing to weather circumstances also belong to hours worked.

Hours worked by employees exclude the number of hours worked by

- own account workers and their unpaid family members;

- casual workers;

- contractors on commission contract.

Gross wages and salaries are defined as the total sum of remuneration in cash and in kind, payable to all employed persons in return for work done during the reference period irrespective of whether this remuneration is paid regularly or not and whether it is based on working time, output or piece work. It includes the personal income tax and the linear pension and health contributions as well as employees' contribution according to the prevailing valid rates.

The following costs paid by the employer are excluded:

- statutory social security contributions;

- collectively agreed, contractual and voluntary social security contributions;

- imputed social security contributions (guaranteed remuneration in the event of sickness, maternity, occupational accident to compensate for loss of earnings, guaranteed remuneration in the event of short-time working, severance pay, social benefits).

Observation unit: legal unit (considered as enterprise)

The target population of the quarterly Institutional labour survey includes enterprises employing at least 5 employees, the budgetary sector and the designated nonprofit organizations. The number of possible data providers was approximately 91,200 (excluding the local budgetary sector where data are provided on an aggregate level) in 2023. The source of data providers is the Business register.

The target population of STS data consists of enterprises in industry, construction, retail trade, and the service sector. The observation covers sections B to S of NACE Rev. 2 except K (Financial and insurance activities). The number of possible data providers was approximately 83,200.

Territory of Hungary. Data of local units outside of the territory of Hungary of businesses residing in Hungary are included in the employment and earnings data if the activities of the local unit supplement or make preparations to the work of the business (e.g: storage) and the corporate income tax liability on the revenues accrued by the local unit arises in Hungary. 

Time series of annual data about the number of employees and self-employed persons and gross monthly wages and salaries of number of employees and self-employed persons are available from 2000. The infra-annual versions of these time series are published from January 2010. Data on hours worked by employees are available from the first quarter of 2008.

Base year: 2021

In 2023, we submitted data for reference period 2023 Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4 with the base year 2015.

From 2024 onwards - from the reference period 2024 Q1 - we are going to change the base year: we are going to send data with the base year 2021 (at the same time we are going to submit the rescaled data concerning 2022 and 2023 as well).

Nationally wages and salaries data are published quarterly in absolute figures as well as in indices on changes compared to the same period of the previous year.

Percentage.

 Quarter

At European level:

• Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics concerning short term statistics.
• Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197 laying down technical specifications and arrangements pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics concerning short term statistics. (General Implementing Act)
• STS data requirements overview June 2021
• STS data requirements by country size June 2021

All relevant regulations can be found in the STS section on Eurostat’s website under Statistics => Short-term business statistics => Legislation

At national level:

• The Act CLV of 2016 on Statistics (the Hungarian Statistical Law)
• Government Decree on the National Statistical Data Collection Programme enacting the surveys of reference period.

Additional information in English can be found here.

Regulation (EU)  2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics concerning short term statistics.

At European level:

• Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics concerning short term statistics.
• Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197 laying down technical specifications and arrangements pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics concerning short term statistics. (General Implementing Act)

All relevant regulations can be found in the STS section on Eurostat’s website under Statistics => Short-term business statistics => Legislation

At national level:

• The Act CLV of 2016 on Statistics (the Hungarian Statistical Law);
• Act CXII of 2011 on Informational self-administration and freedom of information.
• Additional information in English can be found here.
• The confidentiality policy of HCSO is available on its website

HCSO ensures confidentiality for all the data reported by data providers and the exclusive use of the data for statistical purposes. We disseminate only aggregated data in full compliance with the rules of confidentiality. Individual data, as well as aggregated data consisting of fewer than 3 enterprises are regarded as confidential and therefore not published. Researchers have access to de-identified data sets and to anonymised micro data for scientific purposes with appropriate legal and methodological guaranties in place. As for the employees, they can work with datasets in their competence with registered and controlled access rights. For details see Information on confidentiality for data providers on the website of HCSO.

All of the features of dissemination activity are consistent with the Dissemination and Communication Policy of Hungarian Central Statistical Office. In the elaboration of this document the

• The Act CLV of 2016 on Statistics (the Hungarian Statistical Law)
• Act CXII of 2011 on Right of Informational Self-Determination and Freedom of Information and
• Regulation 223/2009/EC of EP and Council on European Statistics provided the most important legal basis. Furthermore, Dissemination Policy is in line with the Quality Declaration of ESS, the Code of Practice and Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics.

(Since the last update of Dissemination Policy of HCSO a new statistical law has been adopted in Hungary and the European Statistical law has been amended, but the changes do not affect the principals of Dissemination Policy.)

HCSO has a public Dissemination calendar that contains the dissemination dates of all First releases. The public dissemination calendar (Catalogue) on the website of HCSO provided information not only the first releases but the analyses, methodological publications, promotional publications, reports, statistical reflections, yearbooks and pocketbooks. Both calendars are prepared in line with the annual dissemination programme.

A public dissemination calendar of the first releases is accessible and it can be downloaded in Excel format by everyone via the website of HCSO. It provides information about publish date, the date of any modification, the title of publication, the reference period or date and the date of inclusion in the database.

First releases and the related databases are published at 9 a. m. on the day provided in the Dissemination calendar.

Quarterly

HCSO does not publish regular news releases of institutional labour data. However, First releases of earnings data are published monthly.

The first data are published 60 days after the relevant quarter on “gross wages and salaries” and “gross regular earnings (earnings without bonuses)” including nominal averages and indices in the STADAT table system. 

A more comprehensive analysis, the “Labour market trends”,is published on-line on HCSO’s website quarterly. This publication provides a detailed analysis of monthly and quarterly dynamics and publishes figures on job vacancies, unemployment and inactivity, registered jobseekers and labour costs as well as wages and salaries form the quarterly Institutional labour survey.

The STADAT database can be found on HCSO’s website including mostly time series. STADAT posts plenty of data in pre-made tables about numerous topics, with methodological notes. The tables can be downloaded in excel.

In HCSO the following four data access channels are available only for researchers for scientific purposes. The HCSO performs a researcher accreditation procedure for all data requests for these four data access channels.

• Safe Centre access

The HCSO offers access to deidentified microdata sets for scientific purposes in the safe environment of the Safe Centre operated by the HCSO in Budapest.

• Remote access

The offers access to deidentified microdata sets for scientific purposes in the safe environment of the remote access points operated by the HCSO under the same access conditions as the Safe Centre access.

• Remote execution

For scientific purposes, the HCSO produces the requested research outputs inside its own safe environment based on the specifications/syntax files provided by the researcher.

• Release of anonymised microdata sets

By using this data access channel the HCSO provides anonymised microdata sets for the researcher for scientific purposes.

Data transmission to Eurostat is carried out in SDMX format via the eDAMIS system each quarter. SDMX 5.4.4 version is used for the transformation.

Methodological notes on the Institutional labour data collection system are published on HCSOs website. Additional methodological comments can be found in the STADAT system and are accessible in the detailed dissemination database of HCSO.

User-oriented quality reports on statistical domains are prepared in the framework of methodological documentation and are published as metainformation on the HCSO website: Methodological documentation .

An internal HCSO regulation is in place regarding the preparation of producer-oriented quality reports for each statistical domain on a yearly basis.

In case of some statistical domains – concerning first releases – quality check is carried out and documented each month for the management of HCSO. However, this report is not published.

The HCSO Quality Policy lays out the principles and commitments related to the quality of statistics. The documentis consistent with the goals set out in the Mission and Vision statements andwith the principles of the European Statistics Code of Practice and is publicly available on the HCSO website.

The European Statistics Code of Practice is available on the website of the HCSO. Also, HCSO together with the member-organisations of the Hungarian Official Statistical Service created a National Statistics Code of Practice based on the European Statistics Code of Practice.

Quality Guidelines are meant to ensure the quality of the statistical processes. The document has been in place since 2007 (1st revision in 2009, 2nd revision in 2014 and 3rd revision is currently ongoing). The latest version (2014) is available on the HCSO website.

Procedures are in place in order to ensure updated documentation on product quality. (See above about Quality Documentation in 10.7) Apart from the internal reports, quality reports are regularly provided to Eurostat as well.

Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197 laying down technical specifications and arrangements pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics concerning short term statistics. (General Implementing Act)

The processing of data has been developed according to these regulations. The labour data are published in line with STS regulations.

The average response rate for the Institutional labour survey was 93.1 % in 2023. To secure the accuracy of data, HCSO operates an electronic data entry system (Elektra) in which a three-stage data correction system works. Before data are loaded up to the database, a specific IT tool (ADEL) carries out additional checking with the help of several predefined criteria.

The deadlines of the data publication specified in the dissemination calendar were kept every quarter in 2023. The data transmissions to international organisations were also completed timely.

Data revision for previous years is scheduled for August- September 2024.

The Institutional labour survey data are compared with the data of the Annual labour cost survey data and the data of the Annual labour report as part of the annual revision process. There are not known serious quality problems.

The concepts and methods concerning labour data are based on European legislation. The most important users include the Eurostat, the ECB, the national government, The Hungarian National Bank, financial institutions, economic analysts and researchers. The principal internal user is the Department of National Accounts which mainly uses data on the number of employees and self-employed persons and the hours worked by employees. All major user requirements are assessed and fulfilled if possible.

We do not conduct a user satisfaction survey. However, our tables and reports receive a high number of views on the Internet site of HCSO.

The scope and the level of detail meet the obligations. All Eurostat requirements are fulfilled.

Although the response rate is fairly high, non-response is the main source of errors biasing data. A number of institutions send the data late, but these data are taken into consideration over the revisions.

Data are finalized after comparison of the figures with the monthly labour data, the Annual Labour Cost Survey and the Annual Labour Report.

The under-coverage of the survey population is rather small because the online connection between HCSO’s Business Register and the Registry Court assures a reliable sampling frame. A good value about the rate of over-coverage can be calculated on the basis of the Business Register. The rate of other errors (for example classification error) is noted over the data collection, and statisticians list these cases and calculate their number.

In 2023 the total number of data providers from the business and the nonprofit sectors reached 18,900 per quarter on average, of which 9,220 were members of the sample. In the budgetary sector the average number of data providers amounted to 10,200.

The coefficient of variation is calculated for the variables “Number of employees and self-employed persons”, “Hours worked by employees” and “Gross wages and salaries”.

For the “Number of employees and self-employed persons”, the CV was between 0.093% and 0.192% in 2023. In case of “Hours worked by employees”, it was between 0.089% and 0.125%, and finally for “Gross wages and salaries (Earnings)”, it lied between 0.090% and 0.113% in 2023. Thus, the sampling error is low.

The non-response is treated with various imputation algorithms (i.e. the design weights were not adjusted for non-response). For the representative part of the population, outlier-detection techniques are used. The outlier enterprises are taken into account with a design weight of 1 during the estimation calculations.

The main sources of the non-sampling errors for the labour data are nonresponse and coverage errors.

The weighted response rate on record level was between 95.6% and 96.90% in 2023, the yearly average was 96.39%, which is considered good. “Number of employees and self-employed persons” was used as weighting variable.

The under-coverage is small. The over-coverage concerning data suppliers was between 1.74% and 2.09% in 2023, mainly due to the enterprises which went bankrupt, became insolvent or interrupted their activities. The other types of non-sampling error (classification error or if the enterprise becomes inaccessible) are low.

The first preliminary data in the STADAT-tables are published 60 days after the reference period. A more detailed analysis, the “Labour market trends” is published quarterly, about 70-80 days after the reference period.

The publications agreed to the dissemination calendar in 2022.The publication of STS labour data followed STS regulations. There were no time lags.

Within Hungary the same statistical concepts and calculation methods are applied over all of its territory. All sources of data are of full regional coverage. There are no difficulties concerning the geographical comparability.

The time series were broken in 2009 due to the introduction of NACE Rev. 2. Data were recalculated for 2000 onwards.

In case of STS data nonprofit enterprises were also included in the target population in 2016 which caused another break in the time series.

As of January 2018 HCSO started to use the number of employees and self-employed persons estimated from the interim tax returns for producing estimates for enterprises surveyed by sampling as well as for defining the fixed staff categories used in publications. The methodological change caused a one-off, major rearrangement in the composition of the reference population, so, in terms of total values (Number of employees and self-employed persons, total earnings, wages and salaries according to the SNA concept, total hours worked by employees) published since January 2018, there is a break in the time series. 

As of 2019, the institutional labour data collection system of HCSO was renewed. A quarterly labour survey was introduced to complete the monthly administrative data, applying the same sampling and surveying methodology and questionnaire as the monthly survey previously.  However, the imputation, weighting and estimation methodology was modified, causing a break in the time series from January 2019.

Data are confronted with the Labour Cost Survey and the Annual Labour Report.

Administrative data, e.g. the monthly social security report of the National Tax Office, are also used for data evaluation.

Based on the results of all comparisons, we can declare that the cross domain coherence of labour data is satisfactory.

HCSO uses ELEKTRA, an online reporting system, to collect data from data providers. Each year statisticians define testing algorithms to secure that data are consistent already during the completion of the online forms. If the data do not meet the predefined rules, the data suppliers get an error message. Without correction, inaccurate questionnaires cannot be submitted.

Before data are uploaded to the database, a specific IT tool (ADEL) carries out additional checking. It reviews several predefined criteria, among others the comparability of data to former time periods. After the database is closed, data are reviewed by experts who may contact the data suppliers if it is necessary for further consultation. These processes assure a high internal consistency of data.

Burden (average respondent minutes per quarter, 2023) 32 minutes/respondent/quarter that is 2 hours/respondent/year on average.

Costs (on the basis of the latest data of 2015): 45 025 personnel hours by NSI/year

A revision in official statistics is defined as any change in a value of a statistic released to the public. The fundamental aim of revision is to improve data quality and thereby to be more accurate when reflecting the reality.

Routine revision of quarterly data:

Labour data are reviewed every quarter as part of a routine revision process, however a revision takes place only if the modifications exceed a predefined level.

• Goal of the revision: to incorporate newly submitted, previously missing or corrected data. Aggregates and components are revised at the same time. In 2023 no routine revision of quarterly data took place.

Annual routine revision:

• Annual planned revision of the preceding year is also part of the revision process.
• Deadline: T(year)+250 days.
• Data are always modified and with the process the quarterly labour data become final.
• Since 2016 annual revisions have been cancelled. The next annual revision for 2016-2022 is planned, and after that revised data can be considered final. for August-September, 2024. Aggregates and components will berevised at the same time. Major revisions affect a large part of the time, it is necessary to backcast time series, otherwise major revisions would produce breaks and inconsistencies in them.

Unplanned revision:

• In extreme cases data are revised when not planned due to either processing or technical issues and to problems with the data. Aggregates and components are revised at the same time.
• Revised publications indicate the changes in the data.
• No unplanned revision took place in 2023.

HCSO notifies users about forthcoming revisions in time and indicates their date and time in the revision calendar.

Revisions are communicated and documented based on the Dissemination and Communication Policy of the HCSO.

The main source of data is the quarterly Institutional labour survey. A simple random sample is used for enterprises with 5-49 number of employees and self-employed persons. The size of the sample is about 9166 enterprises. Systematic sampling method is applied based on the random order of enterprises. The sample is stratified; stratification variables are divisions and classes of NACE, number of employees and self-employed persons and location of enterprise (capital/non-capital). In case of enterprises over 49 number of employees and self-employed persons total enumeration is applied; there is no stratification.

All nonprofit organizations over 49 employees in branches A-S and over 2 employees in branches E, P and Q send data through the online questionnaire.

We take over the data of all budgetary organizations from the Hungarian State Treasury.

Quarterly

Data collection is based on an on-line survey. The design of the questionnaire including the development of error monitoring rules is the job of the statisticians. The evaluation of the data collection process takes place in close cooperation with the IT department at the end of the year preceding the beginning of the new data collection. When the new data collection period starts, and the new questionnaire is accessible or when the deadline of data provision has expired, the IT system automatically sends an e-mail to the data providers. During data collection continuous assistance operates for data suppliers by phone or by e-mail. In case of non-response the data collectors may:

• re-contact the data providers by phone
• send a warning message or
• fine them as a final measure.

Reported data are automatically checked by an IT tool developed by HCSO in the online reporting system. The software assesses the internal coherence of data using rules and considerations defined by statisticians and data collectors responsible for the given data survey. A list of errors is compiled automatically. Reports with mistakes are sent back to the data providers asking for correction. In certain cases (e.g. a variable varies from the value of the previous month or corresponding period of the previous year considerably) data providers can give an explanation and if the statistician or the collectors accept the clarification, data will not be corrected.

The codes (NACE, staff categories of enterprises, geographic area) come from the Business Register. If a code of a data provider is changed over the years the reason is cleared up.

Before the finalisation of the data file, the values are compared to the Labour cost survey and the data of the Annual labour report as part of the larger revision.

Imputation is carried out for enterprises over 49 employees. For earnings and employment, data from the preceding survey and the monthly administrative labour data from the social security reports collected and transferred by the National Tax Authority are used. corrected for group dynamics of the units of the same size class and NACE division. If data from the previous quarter are missing, data calculated as the average of the data of units in the same size class and NACE division are used.   

For enterprises employing more than 249 employees statisticians provide an expert estimate for the imputation of missing data.

After imputation and grossing-up, calculated variables are derived.

Seasonal Adjustment

At the Hungarian Central Statistical Office the TRAMO/SEATS method with JDemetra+ is used for seasonal adjustment in accordance with the ESS guidelines on seasonal adjustment. Model revision as default takes place yearly, and the results of the new model are published with the first data of the new year. During this step a fully automated model identification is made by TRAMO/SEATS, but the final decision is based on subject-matter domain information. During the year, with each new data the coefficients of the model are re-estimated, and revision of the seasonally adjusted data is made from the beginning of the time series. No forecast is made in any step of the process.

Calendar adjustment

For the calendar adjustment country specific calendar is used, which includes all the national holidays since 1990. Working day regressor is used for quarterly time series, and for monthly time series shorter than 15 years. For monthly time series which are at least 15 years long trading day regressors are used. The leap year effect is tested and used if it is significant.

Standard Easter effect is also used in the models if it has a significant effect and/or economic reason is available.

Outlier detection

Additive (AO), level shift (LS) and temporary change (TC) outliers are used during the seasonal adjustment process. In the yearly model revision the results of the automatic outlier detection and the economic reasons are checked. At the end of the process outliers used in the previous year are changed (especially those of which were long time ago) if it is strongly reasonable.

During the year last outliers refresh strategy of the JDemetra+ is used, it means that the outliers in the last year of the sample are re-identified.

More general information can be found in the following link: About seasonal adjustment

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The links open immediately after clicking.