Form ATUS Leave Module ATUS Leave Module ATUS Leave Module

April 30 2010

NOTE TO THE REVIEWER OF:	OMB No. 1220-0141 Cognitive and Psychological Research
FROM:	Scott Fricker Research Psychologist Office of Survey Methods Research Bureau of Labor Statistics
SUBJECT:	Submission of Materials for Cognitive Testing of American Time Use Survey’s Leave Questions

Please accept the enclosed materials for approval under the OMB clearance package “Cognitive and Psychological Research.” In accordance with our agreement with OMB, we are submitting a brief description of the research, and the materials to be used in the research.

We plan to interview 20 respondents. The maximum number of burden hours is estimated to be 20 hours.

If there are any questions regarding this project, please contact Scott Fricker at (202) 691-7390.

Attachments

American Time Use Survey (ATUS)

Leave Module

I. Introduction and Purpose

The American Time Use Survey (ATUS) is a continuous, nationally-representative telephone survey of the civilian non-institutional population age 15 and over. Respondents are asked to sequentially describe what they did “yesterday,” from 4 a.m. of the previous day to 4 a.m. of the interview day. The sample is chosen from those households that completed the eighth (final) CPS interview, and in each of these households, one person is randomly selected to be interviewed for the ATUS. Each person is also assigned to be interviewed on a particular day (e.g., Tuesday), with interviewers attempting to reach the designated person for up to eight weeks. About half of the respondents are interviewed on a weekday and about half on a weekend day.

BLS is considering adding an ATUS module that would capture information about Americans’ access to and use of paid and unpaid work leave. An ATUS leave module would enable researchers to examine the relationship between time use and leave – e.g., the extent to which individuals’ leave taking during the week affects their hours worked on the other days, or how patterns of leave taking are affected by flexible or alternative work-schedules. In addition, one of the primary objectives of the ATUS is to provide data on time spent in productive non-market activities like housework, child care and volunteer activities. An ATUS leave module would offer the chance to examine how alternative work and leave schedules can affect time spent in such non-market activities.

The ATUS collects time use data from approximately 13,000 Americans a year. The objective of the proposed module is to collect data on employees’ access to leave (e.g., what types of leave are available and for what purposes) and their leave activities (e.g., instances of paid leave taking, leave denials, and non-use of leave; use of unpaid leave and schedule adjustments in lieu of taking paid leave). The purpose of this study is to conduct cognitive tests of the proposed leave items in order to gain insight about respondents’ understanding of the terms, definitions, and concepts associated with leave. The tests will be conducted by BLS staff in the Office of Survey Methods Research (OSMR) and Office of Employment and Unemployment Statistics (OEUS).

II. Participants

Twenty participants will be recruited for this study. The participants will be solicited from OSMR’s database of general population study participants, and will be compensated $40 upon completion of the session. During recruitment and screening, we will collect the following information to ensure that we are interviewing a cross-section of the target population: employment status (full vs. part-time); class of worker (federal, private, not for profit, self-employed); age, and education. An effort will be made to interview at least ten individuals who have taken leave from a job within the previous week.

III. Research Design

A research psychologist from the OSMR and an ATUS staff member will interview the participants individually in the OSMR Behavior Science Laboratory.

The cognitive testing protocol will follow a structured format (see Appendix A). During the first part of the interview, respondents will be introduced to the study and then administered the proposed leave module questions; the last half of the session will be spend administering the debriefing questions. The interviews should last about 60 minutes on average.

We will make an effort to stratify our interviewing days during the week in order to capture a representative range of reporting days (i.e., weekdays vs. weekends).

IV. Burden Hours

BLS anticipates that 20 individuals will each participate in a 60-minute cognitive test session, for a total of 20 burden hours.

V. Data Confidentiality

Participants will be informed of the voluntary nature of the study. Participants will also be informed that the study will be used to help staff of the ATUS program better decide what information should be collected in a leave module. Information related to this study will not be released to the public in any way that would allow participants to be identified, except as prescribed under the conditions of the Privacy Act Notice. A copy of the consent form is included (see Appendix B).

VI. Attachments

Appendix A: Draft questionnaire

APPENDIX B: Interview protocol

APPENDIX C: CONSENT FORM

appendix A: Draft Questionnaire

ATUS Leave Module – BLS Proposal

Note: Questions only will be asked of persons who are coded as employed as wage and salary workers in the seven days prior to taking the ATUS survey.

The next few questions are about paid and unpaid leave from a job.

Leave access

Q1. (IF MULTIPLE JOB HOLDER: Thinking about the job where you worked the most hours last week) Do you receive paid leave on your job?

1. Yes Go to Q2

2. N o

3. DK Go to Q3

4. Ref

Q2. I’m going to read you a list of types of paid leave that employers might offer. Please tell me which ones [your employer/the employer where you worked the most hours last week] offers: [Read all]

1. Sick leave (for yourself or to care for other family members) Yes/No/DK/REF

2. Vacation or annual leave Yes/No/DK/REF

3. General or personal leave Yes/No/DK/REF

4. Paid holidays Yes/No/DK/REF

5. Family leave, including leave for birth or adoption of a child Yes/No/DK/REF

[Goto Q2a]

Q2a. Did I miss any other types of paid leave that are available to you in your (main) job?

1. Yes (goto Q2b)

2. N o

3. DK (goto Q3)

4. REF

Q2b. What other types of paid leave are available to you in your (main) job?

Specify: _______________________________________

[GOTO Q3]

Q3. [In addition to your paid leave/In your main job,] Are you allowed to take time off from work without pay?

1. Yes (goto Q3a)

2. N o

3. DK (goto Q4)

4. REF

Q3a. I’m going to read a list of reasons why you might have to miss work. Assuming that you have received your employer’s approval, for each reason, please tell me whether or not you are able to take time off from work without pay.

[Read all]

1. Own illness or medical care YES/NO/DK/REF

2. Illness or medical care of another family member YES/NO/DK/REF

3. Childcare (other than for illness) YES/NO/DK/REF

4. Eldercare (other than for illness) YES/NO/DK/REF

5. Vacation or personal reasons YES/NO/DK/REF

6. Birth or adoption of a child YES/NO/DK/REF

[GOTO Q4_Intro]

Leave activity – Past Week

Q4_Intro. Now I want to ask you about your work time in the past week.

Q4. Did you take any time off from your job over the past seven days, that is from last [Fill DAY] through yesterday?

1. Yes (goto Q4a)

2. N o

3. DK (goto Q5)

4. REF

Q4a. Did you take any time off from your job yesterday?

1. Yes

2. No

[If Q1=1 then goto Q4b; else if Q1 = 2 then goto Q4d]

Q4b. [If Q4a = 1:] Did you use paid leave for any of the time that you took off from work yesterday?

[ Else:] Thinking about the most recent leave that you took from work during the past seven days…..did you use paid leave for that time off?

1. Yes, paid for all

2. Yes, paid for some

3. No, not paid

4. DK

5. REF

[Interviewer will probe to determine which “yes” – 1 or 2, above – is applicable.]

[GOTO Q4c]

Q4c. What type(s) of leave did you use? (open-ended question, allow check all)

1. Sick leave

2. Vacation or annual leave

3. General or personal leave

4. Paid holidays

5. Family leave, including leave for birth or adoption of a child

6. Unpaid leave

7. Other

[GOTO Q4d]

Q4d. [IF Q4a = 1, then read:] What was the primary reason you had to take off from work yesterday?

[Else:] Again, thinking about the most recent leave you took in the last seven days, what was the primary reason that you had to take off from work?

[Read as necessary]

1. Own illness or medical care

2. Illness or medical care of another family member

3. Childcare (other than for illness)

4. Eldercare (other than for illness)

5. Vacation

6. Errands or other personal business

7. Birth or adoption of a child

8. Other

[If Q4d = 2, then goto Q4e; else goto Q4f]

Q4e. Which member(s) of your family were ill?

[Select all that apply]

1. Spouse or partner

2. Child

3. Parent

4. Other relative

5. Other

[GOTO Q4f]

Q4f. [Altogether,] How long were you on leave [yesterday/for this reason]?

________ hours/days

[Convert reported minutes into fractions of hour, rounding to closest quarter hour]

[GOTO Q4g]

Q4g. Was any of the time you took off [yesterday/last week/for that most recent leave] covered by the Family Medical Leave Act or FMLA?

1. Yes

2. No

3. DK

4. REF

[GOTO Q5]

Schedule Adjustments

Q5. [If Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 2, then ask:] You said that you don’t have leave available (in your main job), but can you vary your work schedule if you needed to take time off work?

[Else if Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1, then ask:] Can you vary your work schedule instead of taking unpaid leave?

[Else if Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2, then ask:] Can you vary your work schedule instead of taking paid leave?

[Else if Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1, then ask:] Can you vary your work schedule instead of taking leave?

1. Yes [goto Q5a]

2. N o

3. DK [goto Q6_Intro]

4. REF

Q5a. [If Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 2, then ask:] In the last seven days – that is from [DAY] through yesterday – did you change your work schedule because you needed to take time off work?

[Else if Q4 = 1 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] In the last seven days – that is from [DAY] through yesterday –did you change your work schedule rather than use additional leave?

[Else if Q4 = 2 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] In the last seven days – that is from [DAY] through yesterday – did you change your work schedule rather than using leave?

1. Yes [If Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 2, then goto Q5c; else goto Q5b]

2. N o

3. DK goto Q6_Intro

4. REF

Q5b. [If Q4 = 1 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] Why did you vary your schedule instead of taking additional leave?

[If Q4 = 2 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] Why did you vary your schedule instead of taking leave?
[Read as necessary/Select all that apply]

1. Wanted to conserve my paid leave

2. Preferred to work rather than to take paid leave

3. Paid leave balance was too low

4. Employer did not approve use of available paid leave

5. Had too much work to be feel comfortable taking paid leave

6. Only unpaid leave was available

7. Other

[Goto Q5c]

Q5c. In what way did you change your schedule in the last seven days?
(Read aloud/Select all that apply)

1. Worked different hours than usual (but the same total)

2. Worked fewer hours than usual

3. Worked more hours than usual

4. Worked different days than usual (but same total)

5. Worked fewer days than usual

6. Worked more days than usual

7. Other

[GOTO Q5d]

Q5d. What was the main reason you changed your work schedule instead of taking leave?

[Read as necessary]

1. Own illness or medical care YES/NO/DK/REF

2. Illness or medical care of another family member YES/NO/DK/REF

3. Childcare (other than for illness) YES/NO/DK/REF

4. Eldercare (other than for illness) YES/NO/DK/REF

5. Vacation or personal reasons YES/NO/DK/REF

6. Birth or adoption of a child YES/NO/DK/REF

[GOTO Q6_Intro]

Non-use of leave

Q6_Intro. The next few questions are about times when you may have needed to take off from work but could not.

Q6. During the past seven days, that is from last [FILL DAY] through yesterday, were there situations in which you needed to take off from work but did not?

1. Yes (goto Q6a)

2. No (END)

Q6a. Why did you need to take off work? (Select all that apply)

1. Own illness or medical care

2. Illness or medical care of another family member

3. Childcare (other than for illness)

4. Eldercare (other than for illness)

5. Vacation

6. Errands or other personal business

7. Birth or adoption of a child

8. Other

[If Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 2, then END; else goto Q6b]

Q6b. Why did you decide not to take leave?

[Read as necessary/Select all that apply]

1. Too much work

2. Wanted to save leave

3. Leave was denied

4. No leave available

5. Fear of job loss or other negative employment-related consequence

6. Could not afford the loss in income

7. Other

[END]

Appendix b: CognitIve Interview Protocol

Introductory Script

Hi! Thank you for coming in today. My name is ( ). I work for ( ) in the Bureau of Labor Statistics. [This is my colleague ( ).]

I [we] look forward to working with you today.

With your permission, I will be taping this session. This allows me to ensure the accuracy of your answers, and also allows me to focus on you and your responses instead of taking notes. Do you mind if I audiotape?

Before we get started, please read over the consent form. If you agree to participate in the study, print and sign your name as indicated on the bottom of the form. If you do not agree, just let me know now.

Let me explain a bit about what we’ll be doing today. We are going to be working with some questions from the American Time Use Survey, which is an ongoing national survey that provides information about how Americans spend their time. Today, we will be going through the survey together as if you were a real respondent, and then we will spend a few minutes talking about your experience –what you liked or disliked about the survey, what you found confusing, etc.. Because the ATUS is a phone survey, I’ll actually be leaving the room in a minute to conduct the survey with you over the phone, but then I’ll come back in here afterward so we can discuss your reactions to the survey face-to-face.

It’s important to point out the purpose of today’s session is to help us find out more about how people respond to these questions. We are not here to evaluate you; we are looking to improve the questions, so there are no ‘right’ or’ wrong’ answers - we actually are just interested in how easy the questions are to understand and answer. All the information you give us will be kept completely confidential, and only will be used to improve the survey questions. Do you have any questions so far?

Debriefing Questions

1. GENERAL REACTIONS

1. Time diary – Thank you. Let’s start by talking about what it was like for you to be asked about what you did yesterday. Can you tell me how that was? Did you find it easy or difficult? Intrusive or not-intrusive?

2. Leave module – Okay, how about the questions at the end of the survey which asked you about the types of leave that you have, leave you may have taken, etc. How were those questions for you? Easy/difficult?

2. COGNITIVE/LINGUISTIC ISSUES

Thanks. I’d like to spend some more time now talking about what it was like for you when I asked you about your leave situation at work. We started off the leave module with a brief introductory statement and by asking about paid leave.

The next few questions are about paid and unpaid leave from a job.

Q1. (IF MULTIPLE JOB HOLDER: Thinking about the job where you worked the most hours last week) Do you receive paid leave on your job?

The question we asked you was [Read Q1]:

What was your general reaction to this question?

What went through your mind? Did the question make sense to you?

What does the term paid leave mean to you?

Q2. I’m going to read you a list of types of paid leave that employers might offer. Please tell me which ones [your employer/the employer where you worked the most hours last week] offers: [Read all]

6. Sick leave (for yourself or to care for other family members) Yes/No/DK/REF

7. Vacation or annual leave Yes/No/DK/REF

8. General or personal leave Yes/No/DK/REF

9. Paid holidays Yes/No/DK/REF

10. Family leave, including leave for birth or adoption of a child Yes/No/DK/REF

The next question I asked you was about the types of paid leave that you might have. [Re-read question stem]

Did you find this question easy or difficult? Why – what made it [easy/difficult]?

Can you tell me a bit more about your paid leave situation at work?

[Follow-up any DK responses – were there types of leave that you weren’t sure about?]

[Probe for understanding of phrase “general or personal leave” and ‘paid holidays’.]

Do all of these categories seem reasonable and distinct to you?

How easy would you say it was for you to tell me if your employer offered these different types of leave [separate out by leave type, if necessary]? Would you say that it was –

• very easy

• somewhat easy

• somewhat difficult, or

• very difficult

Why was it (FILL respondent’s answer)?

There are a lot of different types of leave. I’d like to read you a list of a few other types and see if you’ve ever heard of them and if you know what they are, okay?

Paid Time Off or PTO?

Consolidated Leave Program

Cafeteria Leave

Q3b. Did I miss any other types of paid leave that are available to you in your (main) job?

In response to this question, you reported that you (also have [FILL other leave type]/don’t have any other types of paid leave].

[For R who reported additional types of leave, ask:] Could you tell me more about that?

[Probe to see if R’s leave could be coded as one of the pre-coded leave categories or in fact is a new/different type of leave.]

Did you find this question easy or difficult to answer? Why?

Are there types of paid leave that you’re aware of but which are not offered in your current job?

Q4. [In addition to your paid leave/In your main job,] Are you allowed to take time off from work without pay?

Can you tell me in your own words what this question was asking?

Was it difficult or easy to answer? Why is that?

Q3a. I’m going to read a list of reasons why you might have to miss work. Assuming that you have received your employer’s approval, for each reason, please tell me whether or not you are able to take time off from work without pay.

[Read all]

7. Own illness or medical care YES/NO/DK/REF

8. Illness or medical care for other family members YES/NO/DK/REF

9. Childcare (other than for illness) YES/NO/DK/REF

10. Eldercare (other than for illness) YES/NO/DK/REF

11. Vacation or personal reasons YES/NO/DK/REF

12. Birth or adoption of a child YES/NO/DK/REF

What were your reactions to this question?

Did you find it easy or difficult to answer these items? Why?

[Read response options – ask if they make sense/if the R understands them.]

What types of things would you count as childcare? Eldercare?

Have you ever taken unpaid leave for any of these reasons?

Are there any other types of reasons that someone might be able to take unpaid leave – are we missing anything on this list?

[If so] What types of reasons?

Can you tell me more about that – how does that work?

Have you ever taken unpaid leave for any of these [other] reasons?

[For anyone:] Are there any other types of reasons that someone might be able to take unpaid leave – are we missing anything on this list?

Q4_Intro. Now I want to ask you about your work time in the past week.

Q4. Did you take any time off from your job over the past seven days, that is from last [Fill DAY] through yesterday?

The next set of questions asked you about leave that you may have taken. We started by saying [Read transition statement and Q4.]

Any problems/issues with this question? Why?

Was it at all sensitive for you to answer this question or didn’t you mind?

How about the reference period – we asked about the last seven days - was it

difficult to recall whether you took leave in the last seven days?

[If “YES”, ask:] Can you think of a better way we could ask this Q?

What does it mean to take time off from your job?

Can you tell me a bit more about your job situation? Do you usually work the same days each week, or do the days that you work vary from week to week?

How about your hours - on the days that you work, is your work schedule basically the same each day, or do the hours that you work vary from day to day?

Do you use Flexitime or a similar leave program? [If not, have you ever heard of this –do you know what it is?]

Q4a. Did you take any time off from your job yesterday?

Q4b. [If Q4a = 1:] Did you use paid leave for any of the time that you took off from work yesterday?

[ Else:] Thinking about the most recent leave that you took from work during the past seven days…..did you use paid leave for that time off?

[Only R who have paid leave in their job got this question – Probe for any issues that came up during administration]

What was your general reaction to this question?

Did it make sense to you or was it confusing? Why?

[For any R who indicated that they had multiple leave instances in last week, ask (in addition):]

Can you tell me more about your leave situation last week?

What times did you take time off from work?

Was it easy or difficult to think about the most recent leave that you took?

Why?

[Probe for any situations in which R used a combination of leaves]

[Probe for any situations in which R reported using credit time – do they know what it is? Can they earn it on their job? Do they consider that to be paid leave?]

Q4d. [IF Q4a = 1, then read:] What was the primary reason you had to take off from work yesterday?

[Else:] Again, thinking about the most recent leave you took in the last seven days, what was the primary reason that you had to take off from work?

[Read as necessary]

1. Own illness or medical care

2. Illness or medical care of another family member

3. Childcare (other than for illness)

4. Eldercare (other than for illness)

5. Vacation

6. Errands or other personal business

7. Birth or adoption of a child

8. Other

[Probe for any problems that arose during administration –e.g., “You seemed to hesitate when I asked you this question. Can you tell me what you were thinking?”]

What was your reaction to this question? Any difficulties or confusion?

Q4f. [Altogether,] How long were you on leave [yesterday/for this reason]?

[For R who reported taking leave:]

Was it easy or difficult for you to answer this question? Why?

How did you arrive at your answer? How do you know how much leave time you used?

Would you say that your answer was very accurate, somewhat accurate, somewhat inaccurate, or very inaccurate? [If not ‘very accurate’ ask why]

Q4g. Was any of the time you took off [yesterday/last week/for that most recent leave] covered by the Family Medical Leave Act or FMLA?

[Probe for any DK answers that were given during administration; ask of all participants]

Were/are you familiar with the Family Medical Leave Act or FMLA?

Can you tell me what it is in your own words – what sorts of leave situations the FMLA covers?

Do you know if it’s paid leave or unpaid leave?

[If R did not say DK/REF:] How confident were you in your answer [to Q7e] – very confident, somewhat confident, not very, or not at all?

Why?

Q5. [If Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 2, then ask:] You said that you don’t have leave available (in your main job), but can you vary your work schedule if you needed to take time off work?

[Else if Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1, then ask:] Can you vary your work schedule instead of taking unpaid leave?

[Else if Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2, then ask:] Can you vary your work schedule instead of taking paid leave?

[Else if Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1, then ask:] Can you vary your work schedule instead of taking leave?

What did this question mean to you? What kinds of things did you think of when you heard this question?

[Probe any issues that arose during administration]

What does it mean to “vary your work schedule?”

How about “instead of taking leave” – how did you interpret that?

[If R has problems/confusion with phrase, clarify intended meaning and say:]

It’s important that we have questions that are easy to understand. Can you think of a different way we might ask this question to get at what we want?

Q5a. [If Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 2, then ask:] In the last seven days – that is from [DAY] through yesterday – did you change your work schedule because you needed to take time off work?

[Else if Q4 = 1 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] In the last seven days – that is from [DAY] through yesterday –did you change your work schedule rather than use additional leave?

[Else if Q4 = 2 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] In the last seven days – that is from [DAY] through yesterday – did you change your work schedule rather than using leave?

[Probe any issues that arose during administration]

Q5b. [If Q4 = 1 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] Why did you vary your schedule instead of taking additional leave?

[If Q4 = 2 AND (Q1 = 2 and Q3 = 1) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 2) OR (Q1 = 1 and Q3 = 1), then ask:] Why did you vary your schedule instead of taking leave?
[Read as necessary/Select all that apply]

1. Wanted to conserve my paid leave

2. Preferred to work rather than to take paid leave

3. Paid leave balance was too low

4. Employer did not approve use of available paid leave

5. Had too much work to be feel comfortable taking paid leave

6. Only unpaid leave was available

7. Other

[Probe issues that arose during administration]

Was this question easy to answer or did you find it difficult? Why?

[For Rs who did not report varying their work schedule, read Q5b aloud now.]

What was/is your reaction to this question?

[Read response options] Do these response options make sense to you? Why/why not?

Are there any other types of reasons you think we should include on this list?

Q5c. In what way did you change your schedule in the last seven days?
(Read aloud/Select all that apply)

1. Worked different hours than usual (but the same total)

2. Worked fewer hours than usual

3. Worked more hours than usual

4. Worked different days than usual (but same total)

5. Worked fewer days than usual

6. Worked more days than usual

7. Other

[Probe any issues that arose during administration]

[For those who were asked this question:] How about this question – was it easy for you to answer or not?

[Probe whether difficulties stemmed from comprehending the question, difficulty

recalling, problems with the response options, etc.]

Q5d. What was the main reason you changed your work schedule instead of taking leave?

[Probe any issues that arose during administration]

Was this question clear? Any issues?

Non-use of leave

Q6. During the past seven days, that is from last [FILL DAY] through yesterday, were there situations in which you needed to take off from work but did not?

The next set of questions asked about times when you may have needed to take leave, but did not. [Re-read Q6]

What, in your own words, do you think that this question is asking?

Did you find this question easy or difficult to answer? Why?

[If R said ‘NO’ to Q6, ask:] Can you think of any times when you might have needed to take off from work but did not – it doesn’t have to be in the last seven days?

[If so, ask:] Tell me about them – what was the reason and why didn’t you take off work?

Can you think of other reasons you might need to take off but decide not to?

Q6b. Why did you decide not to take leave?

[For R who were asked this question during mock interview:]

The last question we asked you was, ‘Why did you decide not to take leave?’ You said, [FILL].

Did you have any reactions to this question?

Was it easy or difficult for you to answer? Why?

Are there any questions that I didn’t think to ask you about how to collect this information well?

If I can relay only one message to the team that’s developing these questions, what’s the most important thing that you think I should tell them about collecting information about leave?

Do you have any other reactions or comments about the survey or this cognitive interview before we end this session?

Thanks for your time and assistance!!

Appendix C: Consent form

Consent Form

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is conducting research to increase the quality of BLS surveys. This study is intended to suggest ways to improve the procedures the BLS uses to collect survey data.

The BLS, its employees, agents, and partner statistical agencies, will use the information you provide for statistical purposes only and will hold the information in confidence to the full extent permitted by law. In accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (Title 5 of Public Law 107-347) and other applicable Federal laws, your responses will not be disclosed in identifiable form without your informed consent. The Privacy Act notice on the back of this form describes the conditions under which information related to this study will be used by BLS employees and agents.

During this research you may be audio and/or videotaped, or you may be observed. If you do not wish to be taped, you still may participate in this research.

We estimate it will take you an average of 60 minutes to participate in this research.

Your participation in this research project is voluntary, and you have the right to stop at any time. If you agree to participate, please sign below.

Persons are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. OMB control number is 1220-0141 and expires February 29, 2012.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have read and understand the statements above. I consent to participate in this study.

___________________________________ ___________________________

Participant's signature Date

___________________________________

Participant's printed name

___________________________________

Researcher's signature

OMB Control Number: 1220-0141

Expiration Date: [02/29/12]

PRIVACY ACT STATEMENT

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552a), you are hereby notified that this study is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), under authority of 29 U.S.C. 2. Your voluntary participation is important to the success of this study and will enable the BLS to better understand the behavioral and psychological processes of individuals, as they reflect on the accuracy of BLS information collections. The BLS, its employees, agents, and partner statistical agencies, will use the information you provide for statistical purposes only and will hold the information in confidence to the full extent permitted by law. In accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (Title 5 of Public Law 107-347) and other applicable Federal laws, your responses will not be disclosed in identifiable form without your informed consent.