Methodology of the Canadian Labour Force Survey
Chapter 9 Using the LFS frame or sample for other surveys Methodology of the Canadian Labour Force Survey
Chapter 9 Using the LFS frame or sample for other surveys

9.0 Introduction

Many household surveys use the Labour Force Survey frame or sample for their survey design.  Section 9.1 describes how the LFS frame is used by some other surveys to ensure coordination with the LFS. Section 9.2 describes how the LFS sample is used to obtain samples for supplementary or rotate-out surveys. Section 9.3 provides examples. Surveys that use the LFS frame or sample are important parts of the Statistics Canada household surveys program and are often sponsored by other government departments.

9.1 Surveys that use the LFS frame

Some surveys use the LFS frame to select a separate sample of house­holds, usually in Primary Sampling Units (PSUs) that are also active in the LFS.  Each survey reserves a set of random starts to select dwellings for their exclusive use. Based on the desired allocation, each stratum in the LFS may have zero, one or more starts reserved in this manner. In some cases, PSUs that will not be active for years in the LFS may also have random starts reserved for other surveys. Samples are selected using these starts.  If the sample does not require full starts, the survey can do its own stabilization. This strategy of selecting separate samples reduces the respondent burden because it ensures that a dwelling cannot be selected by more than one survey.  This is usually referred to as negative coordination of selected dwellings.

Although separate samples are selected for the other surveys that use the LFS frame, they can often share interviewer resources with the LFS since they are usually in the same PSUs. Sampling dwellings in the same area during the same collection period leads to collection cost reductions, especially for surveys with a high proportion of Computer Assisted Personal Interviews (CAPI).  This strategy of selecting dwellings for different surveys from the same PSUs is referred to as positive coordination of selected PSUs.

9.2 Surveys that use the LFS sample

There are two types of surveys that use the LFS sample: supplementary and rotate-out surveys. Supplementary surveys interview households that have also been selected for the LFS and that are still active in the LFS. Dependent supplements use the LFS households while they are still being interviewed for the LFS, whereas independent supplements break off from the LFS to inter­view the LFS households at a separate time, or to allow more time than the LFS would for data collection. Rotate-out surveys are similar to supplementary surveys but contact the house­hold after it has been rotated out of the LFS sample, i.e., once the household has completed its sixth month of participation in the LFS.

The main advantage of supplementary and rotate-out surveys is that they can use the data collected by the LFS to screen respondents according to the survey needs.  This can represent significant savings for surveys trying to reach households or persons with specific characteristics (e.g., unemployed individuals). When a household has been rotated out of the LFS sample, that household is still eligible for rotate-out surveys for up to two years.

The primary concern with supplementary and rotate-out surveys is the respondent burden. Topics or questions that are likely to be unacceptable to res­pondents, or that could in some way influence responses obtained for the LFS in the following month, are avoided. Depending on the subject matter and/or the number of active surveys in a month, some supplements are well-received; they increase inter­viewing time, but on the other hand, they also add variety to the experience of being included in the LFS sample for six months.

Each of the six rotation groups of the LFS can be used to produce estimates. Typically, these surveys use one to five rotation groups for their sample, depending on the required level of reliability. For supplements, the LFS birth rotation group, i.e., the one consisting of households being interviewed by the LFS for the first time, is usually avoided because of res­pondent burden. The initial LFS interview takes longer to complete than subsequent interviews.

In some cases, only some of a rotation group’s house­holds are required. Dwellings are dropped at random to reduce the sample to the required number of households, as in the LFS stabilization program. Within a selected dwelling, the survey may be directed at all eligible LFS respondents or at specific individuals. Separate individual respondents may be selected from within selected dwellings through random selection or by screening for respondents with specific demographic or labour force characteristics from the LFS or through special questions.

Two other users of the active LFS sample are the Fast Track Option (FTO) module and the Disaster/Catastrophe Effects (DCE) module. The FTO module involves the addition of a small number of questions (no more than five) to the LFS questionnaire.  Questions on a specific ad hoc topic are added for a single month and are asked to all respondents.  This allows the survey to be conducted and the results to be released in a very timely manner. The DCE module is used to measure the economic impact of event such as natural disasters.  In areas affected by such events, four questions are added to measure the number of working hours lost and the number of overtime hours worked. This module has been used, for example, to measure the economic impact of the 2013 floods in the Calgary region.

9.3 Examples of surveys that use the LFS frame or sample

The following list shows some of the surveys that used the LFS frame or sample in 2015.

9.3.1 Canadian Community Health Survey

CCHS is a cross-sectional survey that collects information related to health status, health care utilization and health determinants for the Canadian population. It relies upon a large sample of respondents and is designed to provide reliable estimates at the health region level. The primary use of the CCHS data is for health surveillance and population health research. Federal and provincial departments of health and human resources, social service agencies, and other types of government agencies use the information collected from respondents to monitor, plan, implement and evaluate programs to improve the health of Canadians.  The sample is divided on a yearly basis into four non-overlapping three-month collection periods.  A large portion of the CCHS sample is positively coordinated with the sample of the LFS in terms of selected PSUs. This means that each month, the CCHS collection takes place in many PSUs in which the LFS is conducting CAPI interviews.

9.3.2 Survey of Household Spending

SHS is an annual survey that primarily collects detailed information on household expenditures. The SHS combines a questionnaire with recall periods based on the type of expenditure (1, 3 or 12 months, last payment, four weeks) and a daily expenditure diary that selected households complete for two weeks following the interview.  SHS data are used at Statistics Canada by the System of National Accounts, in particular as input to calculate the gross domestic product (GDP). The data also helps to update the proportions (weights) of the Consumer Price Index (CPI).  The data are collected on a continuous basis from January to December of the survey year, from a sample of households spread over twelve monthly collection cycles. Since 2015, most of the SHS sample is positively coordinated with the LFS sample in terms of selected PSUs.  This means that each month, the SHS collection takes place almost exclusively in PSUs in which the LFS is conducting birth interviews.   

9.3.3 Travel Survey of Residents of Canada

TSRC is sponsored by Statistics Canada, the Canadian Tourism Commission, and the provincial governments. It measures the size of domestic travel in Canada from the demand side. The objectives of the survey are to provide information about the volume of trips and expenditures for Canadian residents, to provide information on travel incidence and to provide the socio-demographic profile of travelers and non-travelers.  It is a voluntary supplementary survey conducted monthly among LFS responding households that are in their second month of participation.  Once the LFS interview is completed, a person 18 years of age or older is randomly selected from among the household members and the selected person is asked to answer the TSRC questionnaire.  

9.3.4 Canadian Income Survey

The primary objective of CIS is to provide information on the income and income sources of Canadians, along with their individual and household characteristics. The survey gathers information on labour market activity, school attendance, disability, support payments, child care expenses, inter-household transfers, personal income, and characteristics and costs of housing.  It is a supplementary survey conducted from January to April among LFS responding households that are in their sixth month of participation.  Following the LFS interview, and subject to operational constraints, the interviewer asks the household member that provided the information for the LFS to answer the CIS questionnaire for all household members aged 16 years or older.

9.3.5 Employment Insurance Coverage Survey

The main purpose of EICS is to study the coverage of the employment insurance program. It provides a meaningful picture of who does or does not have access to EI benefits among the jobless and those in a situation of underemployment. The Employment Insurance Coverage Survey also covers access to maternity and parental benefits.  The EICS is a rotate-out survey that uses the rotation groups that completed their sixth month in the LFS in March, June, October or December. Mothers from four additional rotation groups (one per collection cycle) are also selected to obtain an adequate sample size. There are four collection cycles each year: April-May, July-August, November-December and January-February. Each cycle lasts five weeks and begins during the month following the reference month (the last month of participation in the LFS).

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