The O*NET Data Collection Program is an ongoing effort to collect and maintain current information on the detailed characteristics of occupations and skills for more than 900 occupations. The resulting database provides the most comprehensive standardized source of occupational and skills information in the nation. O*NET information is used by a wide range of audiences, including individuals making career decisions, public agencies and schools providing career exploration services or education and training programs, and businesses making staffing and training decisions. The O*NET system provides a common language, framework and database to meet the administrative needs of various federal programs, including workforce investment and training programs supported by funding from the Departments of Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services.
The projected total annual burden hours for July 2015âJune 2018 range from 13,918 to 15,375. The average annual burden is 14,537 hours, compared with an average annual burden of 13,671 hours requested for the previous 3-year period (2012â2015). The total burden hours for the July 2015âJune 2018 period, 43,610, reflect a slight increase in burden compared with the 2012â2015 period, for which a total 41,011 hours were requested (U.S. Department of Labor, Employment & Training Administration, 2012). The small increase in burden corresponds to an increase in the number of establishment sampling units that are contacted each year, an estimated 49,667 for the July 2015âJune 2018 period compared with 43,500 for the June 2012âMay 2015 period in the April 10, 2012, OMB Supporting Statement. The slight increase in the number of sampled establishments is attributable to changes in the schedule for fielding cases (occupations), which is impacted by eligibility rates and other sampling characteristics of the specific occupations being studied.
The annual costs have increased since 2012â2015, primarily because of inflation in the benefits portion of employee compensation and also because of the increase in the number of sampling units being contacted per year relative to the 2012â2015 period.
A few minor questionnaire revisions have been implemented since 2012. In addition, several minor questionnaire revisions for the Knowledge Questionnaire and the Background Questionnaire are pending in this submission. All of these revisions are described in detail in Appendix A. These minor revisions do not represent an increase in respondent burden.
As with the burden hours, the slight decrease in total cost burden across the 2 year period July 2016âJune 2018 relative to the July 2015âJune 2016 period results from initiation of data collection for most occupations during July 2015âJune 2016, which causes many of these occupations to complete data collection during the final 2 years.
Weighting and Estimation
Estimates generated from O*NET survey data are computed with sampling weights that compensate for the unequal probabilities of selecting establishments, occupations within establishments, and employees within each selected occupation. In addition, these base weights are adjusted to further compensate for multiple subwaves of sampling, sample adjustment, population under- and overcoverage caused by frame imperfections, and nonresponse at both the establishment and the employee levels.
These weight adjustments can lead to weights that are very large or very small compared with the weights for other sample units. Such weight variability may increase the standard error estimates. When the variation in the weights is large, it is desirable to trim the weights to reduce the variation. For the O*NET estimates, the weighting process involves a weight trimming procedure in which extremely large or small weights are truncated to fall within a specified range. Although trimming weights can introduce bias in the estimates, the variance reduction it achieves usually offsets the potential bias, resulting in estimates with smaller net mean squared errors.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
List_of_Changes.pdf
ONET 1205-0421 PartB-4-8-2015.docx
O*NET/Private Sector Establishments