Methodology - Open Method of Coordination on Social Inclusion and Social Protection (OMC)

The data used to produce the OMC indicators come from different sources as listed next to the name of the indicators.

The most frequently used are:

  • EU-SILC (Community Statistics on Income and Living Conditions) is an output-harmonised instrument which has become the reference source for statistics on income and poverty at EU-level. Both cross-sectional (data pertaining to a given year) and longitudinal (pertaining to changes over a four-year period) data are collected in a harmonised fashion across all EU Member States plus Croatia, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Türkiye. A detailed description of the source can be found in Income, Social Inclusion and Living Conditions. In addition, detailed methodological guidelines for producing the indicators based on EU-SILC and used in the context of the Open Method of Co-ordination are available for consultation.
  • The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a quarterly household sample survey carried out in the Member States of the European Union, Candidate Countries and EFTA countries (except Lichtenstein). It is the main source of information about the situation and trends on the labour market in the European Union. The definitions of employment and unemployment, as well as other survey characteristics follow the definitions and recommendations of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). In addition, harmonisation is achieved through adherence to common principles of questionnaire construction, unemployment definition and common definitions of main variables and reply categories. Further information is available in Employment and unemployment (LFS).

Detailed information on both surveys, methodology and indicators is available through the ESMS metadata which accompany the respective tables.