Final Version (9/17/07)
CES / QCEW Seasonality response analysis survey1
CALL SHEET
Hello. My name is ______________ from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. I'm calling in reference to the monthly report on employment, payroll, and hours submitted by your firm. May I please speak to CONTACT NAME?
CS1. Our records show that you are the contact person for the monthly Report on Employment, Payroll, and Hours. Are you the person who prepares this report?
YES è GO TO CS3
NO
CS2. Who is the person who prepares the monthly report on Employment, Payroll, and Hours for your company? What is (CONTACT NAME’S) telephone and fax number?
CES CONTACT NAME:___________________________________________
CES contact phone number:__________________________________
CES contact fax number:_____________________________________
CS3. In addition to the monthly employment, payroll and hours report, your firm also submits a (NAME OF STATE QUARTERLY WAGE AND TAX REPORT) to (NAME OF STATE EMPLOYMENT AGENCY NAME) for unemployment insurance tax purposes. Are you (also) the person in your company who prepares this quarterly report?
YES è GO TO RECRUITMENT SCRIPT
NO
CS4. Are you familiar with the (NAME OF STATE QUARTERLY WAGE AND TAX REPORT)? Do you receive copies or summaries of the report?
YES, famiLiaR WITH AND REceive Copies/Summaries
YES, Familiar with, but Does NOT REceive Copies/summaries
Not FAMILIAR
CS5. Do you know who prepares the (NAME OF STATE QUARTERLY WAGE AND TAX REPORT)? Is it someone else in the company, a payroll service, an accounting, or someone else?
SOMEONE ELSE IN COMPANY
PAYROLL PROCESSOR, please specify: _______________________________
ACCOUNTANT
OTHER, please specify: _____________________________________________
GO TO RECRUITMENT SCRIPT
RECRUITMENT SCRIPT
We routinely ask businesses to help us assure that we collect the best data possible, so we are contacting a small sample of our respondents to discuss (differences in) the employment numbers between the monthly and quarterly reports.
It would be very valuable to us if we could talk to you about any differences and your procedures, reports, and software. I realize you are very busy, but would you have a little time to answer some questions over the telephone? The questions usually take about 15 minutes, and I can schedule an appointment at your convenience.
IF RESPONDENT AGREES ask:
Which day between [date] and [date] would be best for me to call you back? And what time of day?
APPT DAY: __________________________________
TIME OF DAY: _______________________________
I called [PHONE NUMBER]. Is this the best phone number to use to reach you?
□ Yes
□ No → Correct the information here: ____________________
We would like to FAX you a letter describing in more detail our need to understand employment (differences/data quality). We will also attach your company’s reported employment counts for these two reports.
Would it be alright if I faxed you these documents?
□ Yes
□ No → USE MAIL, VERIFY CORRECT MAIL ADDRESS
IF YES, Ask for respondent’s FAX number (or verify if interviewer has it)
FAX Number: ______________________________
If you need to reach me for any reason, you can call me at [number]. Again, my name is [name]. Do you have any questions for me?
Questionnaire Introduction
INTRO1. We recently (mailed/FAXed) you a letter with a copy of employment data that your company provided for the monthly and quarterly reports last year. It will be useful to refer to while we speak. Do you have it available?
YES, Have Copy available è GO to INTRO3
No
INTRO2. I will have some questions about the employment data we included with the letter. It would be better if I sent you another copy that you could refer to. Can I verify your FAX number?
YES è Verify FAX number, make CALL BACK appt, FAX info
No (or no FAX) è Verify mail address, make call back appt, mail info
INTRO3. We are calling to find out more about how companies keep records and prepare employment counts for the monthly and quarterly reports. First, let me assure you that: CHECK AFTER READING TO RESPONDENT.
The purpose of this call is for statistical purposes only and quality control. This call is not involved with unemployment insurance tax system liability in any way. Your participation is voluntary, and you can decline to answer any questions. |
The information you provide will be held in confidence to the full extent permitted by law. Your firm will not be identified in any way. 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 OMB control number for this interview is: 1220-0011. You are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. |
INTRO4. To make the interview easier, Is there a common name that your firm uses to refer to the monthly report, since I will be asking questions about it? How about the quarterly wage and tax report? (CATI PROGRAMMER: THESE COULD BE SUBSTITUTED IN QUESTIONS IN LIEU OF OTHER NAMES THAT ARE USED FOR THE REPORTS)
MONTHLY REPORT NAME: ________________________________________
QUARTERLY REPORT NAME: _______________________________________
Questionnaire
Q1. First, I’d like to make sure that we have the correct worksite information. We’re looking at: (read identifiers for CES and/OR QCEW worksites; CAn REFER RESPONDENT TO EMPLOYMENT DATA Sheet). Do the reported numbers represent the same worksite, or is it possible they represent other worksites?
SAME Worksite
Other worksites
Don’t know
Q2. (Before we talk about the specific differences in the employment reports),2 I’d like to ask some questions on payroll, company recordkeeping practices, and how employment numbers are prepared. First, do all of your employees appear on the same payroll or do you have more than one payroll? (For example, sometimes hourly workers are on a different payroll than salaried workers or executives.)
SAME PAYROLL FOR ALL EMPLOYEES
MORE THAN ONE PAYROLL
Q3. Do you use the same or different payroll time periods for employees? (For example, sometimes one group of employees is paid monthly and another is paid weekly.)
SAME TIME PERIOD
DIFFERENT TIME PERIOD
IF Q2 IS MORE THAN ONE PAYROLL AND/OR Q3 IS DIFFERENT TIME PERIOD, GO TO Q5, OTHERWISE CONTINUE
Q4. How often do you pay your employees?
Weekly
Bi-weekly (every other week)
Semi-monthly (twice a month)
Monthly
Other, please specify: __________________________
GO TO Q7
Q5. What employee groups are on different payrolls or have different pay periods? (ENTER GROUPS BELOW.) What type of pay period(s) are used for (EACH GROUP)—weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, monthly, or other?
Groups |
Weekly |
Bi-weekly |
Semi-monthly |
Monthly |
Other |
Group 1: _______________________ |
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Group 2: _______________________ |
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Group 3: _______________________ |
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Group 4: _______________________ |
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Group 5: _______________________ |
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Q6. Are you able to include employees from all pay groups in the “all employee” figure for the monthly CES report?
YES
NO è Which employee groups are not included? ________________
è Approximately how many employees are not included? _________
DON’T KNow
Q7. Do you prepare your payroll in-house at this location, or do you have an outside person, organization, or service bureau prepare it for you?
In-house
Outside PERSON, org., service bureau
OTHER, specify: _____________________________________________
Q8. Is the “all employee” figure you provide for the monthly CES Report obtained from this payroll or payroll reports?
YeS
YESèIF OUTSIDE PERSON, ORG., SERVICE BUREAU in Q7, GO TO Q13
Noè GO TO Q12
DON’T KNowè GO TO Q12
Q9. You said that your payroll is prepared in-house. Does your firm use a computer program/software program to prepare the payroll?
YES
No è GO TO Q12
Q10. Is your payroll software: a product that was developed internally for your own use, a product you lease or license from a software company, a commercially-available software package that your firm purchased, or something else?
Developed internally for own use è GO to Q17
Leased or licensed from a software company
Purchased commercially-available package
Other (describe) è GO to Q17
Q11. What company developed the software you use to prepare your payroll? If not listed, cHECK "Other” AND WRITE IN nAME.
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Abra Payroll Software |
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Millennium Payroll |
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SLS Triad |
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CCS Accounting |
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Paychex |
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Software Plus |
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Checkmark Software |
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Peachtree Software |
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Tesseract |
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Data Pro Accounting Software |
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Pensoft Payroll Solutions |
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eBusinessPay by eBusinessLogic |
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Peoplesoft |
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Genesys |
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Quickbooks |
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LTtax |
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Red Wing Business Systems |
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other software company: |
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MasterTax |
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Sage Software |
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name:_______________ |
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MPay Services |
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SAP |
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Don't Know |
Go to Q17
Q12. Where do you get the “all employees” number that you use for the monthly CES Report? (PROBE WHETHER SOURCE IS ELECTRONIC AND RECORD FOR SELECTED CATEGORIES)
Human resources, personnel, or benefits records ( ELECTRONIC)
Time cards or attendance records ( ELECTRONIC)
Other, please specify: ______________________ ( ELECTRONIC)
Memory or personal knowledge
Don’t know
GO TO Q17
Q13. You said that your payroll is prepared by an outside organization. Would that be a payroll processing service, an accounting firm, your corporate or franchise headquarters, or something else?
Payroll Processing Service
Accounting Firm or accountantè GO to q15
Corporate/Franchise Headquartersè GO to Q15
Other (Describe) è GO to q15
Q14. What is the name of the payroll processing service your company uses? CHECK NAME; If not listed, cHECK "Other” AND WRITE IN nAME.
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Accountix |
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Compupay |
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Perfect Software |
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Accupay |
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Davison |
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Platform One |
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ADP (Automated Data Processing) |
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J.D. Edwards |
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Precision Payroll |
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Advantage Payroll Services |
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Kronos |
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ProBusiness Services |
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Alpha Staff |
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Lawson |
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Quickbooks |
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Ameripay |
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National Payroll Service |
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Summitt Software |
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Certified Payroll Services |
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Paytime |
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Other PPF: |
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Ceridian |
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Paychex |
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name:____________ |
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Don't Know |
Q15. Does the (FILL WITH Q13 ANSWER) prepare the monthly CES report for you?
YES
No è GO to q17
Q16. Does the (FILL WITH Q13 ANSWER) also submit your monthly CES report, or do you submit it?
YES, outside firm/PPF submits CES reportè GO TO Q18
No, UNIT ITSELF submits CES reportè GO TO Q18
Don't know è GO TO Q18
Q17. Do you have any existing program or report that you use every month to compile the monthly CES report?
YES
No
Q18. Can you think of any changes to the software, reports, or other data sources used to compile the monthly CES report that might have affected your employment counts during 2006/07?
YES
No è GO TO Q21
DON’T KNOW è GO TO Q21
Q19. What types of changes?
Switched provider or software
Changed or added pay periods
Change or revision in reports
Other, please specify:
Q20. When were the changes made? MM: ____ YYYY: _________
Q21. Does your company or payroll provider clean up or purge employee records at the end of the calendar year or at any other specific time frame? (READ CATEGORIES IF NECESSARY.)
YES, END OF CALENDAR YEAR
YES, AFTER TAXES AND/OR W2 FORMS ARE COMPLETED
YES, END OF QUARTER
YES, END OF MONTH
YES, Other timeS, please specify: ____________________
Noè GO TO Q26
Don’t know è GO TO Q26
Q22. What type of employee records clean up or purging is done?
Q23. Is it done manually or automatically?
MANUALLY
AUTOMATICALLY
CHECK DIFFERENCE TYPE: IF TYPE OF DIFFERENCE = ‘NO DIFFERENCE’ GO TO Q26, OTHERWISE CONTINUE
Q24. For the next question can you refer to the employment table that we sent you (showing CES monthly and quarterly UI report employment). Is it likely that the records cleanup would explain any of the employment differences that are shown in the table (last row of table)?
YESè Which months would be affected? __________________________
Noè GO TO Q26
Q25. Would the cleanup affect employment for the monthly CES report, quarterly UI report, or both reports (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY)? Could you explain how it would affect the numbers ?
MONTHLY CES REPORT ONLY ___________________________________________
QUARTERLY UI REPORT ONLY ___________________________________________
BOTH REPORTS ________________________________________________________
DON’T KNOW ABOUT MONTHLY CES REPORT
DON’T KNOW ABOUT QUARTERLY UI REPORT
DON’T KNOW ABOUT EITHER REPORT
Q26. What time period do you use to provide the monthly CES employment counts? (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY.)
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED THE ENTIRE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED THE PAY PERIOD INCLUDING
THE 12TH OF THE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO ARE PAID DURING THE PAY PERIOD
INCLUDING THE 12TH OF THE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED DURING A PAY PERIOD OTHER THAN THE 12TH DAY OF THE MONTH
oTHER, PLEASE SPECIFY: __________________________________________
Don’t know
Q27. Is it likely that your monthly CES report counts persons who worked anytime during the month rather than just the (pay/time) period including the 12th?
YES
No
Don’t know
Q28. Is it likely that your monthly CES report might include a count of the number of checks issued rather than the number of persons receiving pay? An example is if an employee received both a paycheck and a commission or bonus check, he or she could be counted twice.
YESè Would that occur in all or just some months? ____________
If just some months, which ones?: __________
No
Don’t know
Q29. We’re interested in finding out exactly who gets counted in the employee numbers. I’m going to read a list of different types of employees; please tell me if you usually have these types of employees. (CHECK YES OR NO BELOW IN COLUMN 1.)
Now, a followup question, are (EMPLOYEE TYPE) typically included in the employment numbers you provide for the CES monthly report?
Employee Type |
(1) HAS Employee Type? |
(2) INCLUDED? |
Employees working in locations outside of the state |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees working in locations outside of US |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Trainees |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Seasonal or temporary employees |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Retired employees receiving pensions |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Part-time employees |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Executives or corporate officials |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees on paid vacation, sick, or other paid leave |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees who received bonus pay but who were not working |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees who received pay advances but who were not working |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Q30. The next groups of workers are slightly different. Please indicate if you have these types of workers, if they are included in the monthly report, and the type of tax form they receive.
Employee Type |
(1) HAS EMPLOYEE TYPE? |
(2) INCLUDED IN CES? |
(3) W2 OR 1099? |
Self-employed persons |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
W2 1099 DK |
Outside service providers (such as contractors and their employees) |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
W2 1099 NEITHER DK |
Real Estate/insurance/sales personnel working solely for commissions (ASK ONLY IF NAICS 524210, 531200) |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
W2 1099 DK |
Q31. Do you typically have any of the following types of employees who may be on your books, but who did not receive pay? A followup question, would you typically include or exclude them in the CES monthly report?
Employee Type |
(1) HAS Employee Type? |
(2) INCLUDED? |
employees on family leave not receiving pay |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees on other leave without pay |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees on workers compensation or disability |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees available for work or on-call, but not working |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees on layoff or on strike |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who resigned, were terminated or were fired |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who received pay advances |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who received travel or other non-wage payments |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
QUARTERLY REPORT CHECKPOINT
COMPLETE IF RESPONDENT IS NOT FAMILIAR WITH QUARTERLY REPORT, OTHERWISE GO TO Q32
Do you know who prepares the Quarterly Wage and Tax Report? Do you have (CONTACT NAME’S) telephone and fax number?
QUARTERLY REPORT contact name:________________________________
QUARTERLY REPORT contact phone:________________________________
QUARTERLY REPORT contact FAX:________________________________
Would it be possible to contact (CONTACT NAME) to ask him/her a few questions on the quarterly report and how it is prepared?
Yes
NO
GO TO Q53
Q32. Now I have some questions about the Quarterly Unemployment Insurance Wage and Tax Report. Are the employment numbers you provide for this report obtained from the same source as the CES monthly report? That would be: (AUTO FILL IN THIS ORDER: Q12 ANSWER, Q7 “IN-HOUSE PAYROLL SOFTWARE”, Q13 “OUTSIDE ORGANIZATION”).
SAME SOURCE Q12 or Q7è GO TO Q40
SAME SOURCE q13è GO TO Q38
DIFFERENT SOURCE
Don’t knowè GO TO Q40
OTHER, specify: ____________________________è GO TO Q40
Q33. Where do you get the monthly employment numbers that you use for the quarterly report? (PROBE WHETHER SOURCE IS ELECTRONIC AND RECORD FOR SELECTED CATEGORIES.)
In-house payroll software
An outside organizationè GO TO Q36
Human resource, personnel, or benefits records ( ELECTRONIC) èGO TO Q40
Time cards or attendance records ( ELECTRONIC) èGO TO Q40
Other, please specify: ( ELECTRONIC) èGO TO Q40
Memory or personal knowledgeè GO TO Q40
Don’t knowè GO TO Q40
Q34. Is your payroll software: a product that was developed internally for your own use, a product you lease or license from a software company, a commercially-available software package that your firm purchased, or something else?
Developed internally for own use è GO to Q40
Leased or licensed from a software company
Purchased commercially-available package
Other (describe) è GO to Q40
Q35. What company developed the software you use to prepare your payroll? If not listed, cHECK "Other” AND WRITE IN nAME.
|
Abra Payroll Software |
|
Millennium Payroll |
|
SLS Triad |
|
CCS Accounting |
|
Paychex |
|
Software Plus |
|
Checkmark Software |
|
Peachtree Software |
|
Tesseract |
|
Data Pro Accounting Software |
|
Pensoft Payroll Solutions |
|
|
|
eBusinessPay by eBusinessLogic |
|
Peoplesoft |
|
|
|
Genesys |
|
Quickbooks |
|
|
|
LTtax |
|
Red Wing Business Systems |
|
other software company: |
|
MasterTax |
|
Sage Software |
|
name:_______________ |
|
MPay Services |
|
SAP |
|
Don't Know |
GO TO Q40
Q36. Would that be a payroll processing service, an accounting firm, your corporate or franchise headquarters, or something else?
Payroll Processing Service
Accounting Firm or accountantè GO to q38
Corporate/Franchise Headquartersè GO to Q38
Other (Describe) è GO to q38
Q37. What is the name of the payroll processing service your company uses? CHECK NAME; If not listed, cHECK "Other” AND WRITE IN nAME.
|
Accountix |
|
Compupay |
|
Perfect Software |
|
Accupay |
|
Davison |
|
Platform One |
|
ADP (Automated Data Processing) |
|
J.D. Edwards |
|
Precision Payroll |
|
Advantage Payroll Services |
|
Kronos |
|
ProBusiness Services |
|
Alpha Staff |
|
Lawson |
|
Quickbooks |
|
Ameripay |
|
National Payroll Service |
|
Summitt Software |
|
Certified Payroll Services |
|
Paytime |
|
Other PPF: |
|
Ceridian |
|
Paychex |
|
name:____________ |
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|
Don't Know |
Q38. Does the (FILL WITH Q13 or Q36 ANSWER) prepare the quarterly report for you?
YES
No è GO to q40
Q39. Does the (FILL WITH Q13 or Q36 ANSWER) also submit your quarterly report, or do you submit it?
YES, outside firm/PPF submits QUARTERLY report
No, UNIT ITSELF submits QUARTERLY report
Don't know
Q40. Can you think of any changes to the software, reports, or other data sources you use to compile the quarterly UI report that might have affected your employment counts during 2006/07?
YES
No è GO TO Q43
Don't know è Go TO Q43
Q41. What types of changes?
Switched provider or software
Changed or added pay periods
Change or revision in reports
Other, please specify:
Q42. When were the changes made? MM: ____ YYYY: _________
Q43. (IF Q5 HAS ANY ANSWER FILLED). You indicated earlier you had more than one payroll or payperiod. Are you able to include employees from all pay groups in the monthly employment numbers for the Quarterly report?
YES
NO è Which employee groups are not included? ________________
è Approximately how many employees are not included? _________
DON’T KNow
Q44. (DO NOT ASK IF Q38 = YES) When do you typically complete the quarterly report?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Don't know
Q45. The quarterly tax report asks for employment for each month of the quarter. Does the data source you use to complete the quarterly report contain separate employments counts for each individual month of the quarter?
YESè GO TO Q47
NO
Q46. How do you obtain the employment counts for the separate months contained in the quarterly report?
Q47 What time period do you use to provide the monthly UI employment counts? (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY.)
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED THE ENTIRE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED THE PAY PERIOD INCLUDING
THE 12TH OF THE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO ARE PAID DURING THE PAY PERIOD
INCLUDING THE 12TH OF THE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED DURING A PAY PERIOD OTHER THAN THE 12TH DAY OF THE MONTH
oTHER, PLEASE SPECIFY: __________________________________________
Don’t know
Q48. Is it likely that your (monthly) UI employment figures include persons who worked anytime during the month rather than just the (pay/time) period including the 12th?
YES
No
Don’t know
Q49. Is it likely that your (monthly) UI employment figures include a count of the number of checks issued rather than the number of persons receiving pay? An example is if an employee received both a paycheck and a commission or bonus check, he or she could be counted twice.
YESè Would that occur in all or just some months? ____________
If just some months, which ones?: __________
No
Don’t know
Q50. We’re interested in finding out exactly who gets counted as part of the employee numbers in the quarterly UI report. Do you typically include (AUTOMATICALLY FILL WITH “YES” EMPLOYEE TYPES FROM COLUMN1, Q29)
Employee Type |
INCLUDED? |
Employees working in locations outside of the state |
YES NO DK |
Employees working in locations outside of US |
YES NO DK |
Trainees |
YES NO DK |
Seasonal or temporary employees |
YES NO DK |
Retired employees receiving pensions |
YES NO DK |
Part-time employees |
YES NO DK |
Executives or corporate officials |
YES NO DK |
Employees on paid vacation, sick, or other paid leave |
YES NO DK |
Employees who received bonus pay but who were not working |
YES NO DK |
Employees who received pay advances but who were not working |
YES NO DK |
Q51. The next groups of workers may be handled differently than others. Please indicate if you include any of the following workers in the quarterly report. (AUTOMATICALLY FILL WITH “YES” EMPLOYEE TYPES FROM COLUMN1, Q30)
Employee Type |
INCLUDED IN QUARTERLY REPORT? |
Self-employed persons |
YES NO DK |
Outside service providers (such as contractors and their employees) |
YES NO DK |
Real Estate/insurance/sales personnel working solely for commissions (ASK ONLY IF NAICS 524210, 531200) |
YES NO DK |
Q52. Do you typically include in the quarterly report any of these employees who may be on your books, but who did not receive pay? (AUTOMATICALLY FILL WITH “YES” EMPLOYEE TYPES FROM COLUMN 1, Q31)
Employee Type |
INCLUDED? |
employees on family leave not receiving pay |
YES NO DK |
employees on leave not receiving pay |
YES NO DK |
employees on workers compensation or disability |
YES NO DK |
employees available for work or on-call, but not working |
YES NO DK |
employees on layoff or on strike |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who resigned, were terminated or were fired |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who received pay advances |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who received travel or other non-wage payments |
YES NO DK |
CHECK DIFFERENCE TYPE: IF TYPE OF DIFFERENCE = ‘NO DIFFERENCE’ GO TO END OF INTERVIEW, OTHERWISE CONTINUE
Q53. Finally, looking at the data table we sent with the monthly CES and Quarterly UI figures, there are some months with the same employment, and others that differ. (We have gone over some possible reasons for the differences.) Why do you think the figures are different?
WRITE IN RESPONDENT EXPLANATION:
1.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5.________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Q54. Do you think that either the CES monthly, quarterly UI tax, or both figures are incorrect?
Yes, CES monthly figure is incorrect
Yes, quarterly UI tax figure is incorrect
Yes, both figures are incorrect
No
Don’t know
Q55. (PULL UP GRID WITH EMPLOYMENT DIFFERENCES THAT WAS SENT TO RESPONDENT) Can you identify or provide what you think is/are the most accurate employment number(s) for the month(s) that differ the most? (INTERVIEWER: ATTEMPT TO GET CORRECT VALUES FOR THE LARGEST DIFFERENCES, AND THE DECEMBER 2006/JANUARY 2007 DIFFERENCES).
YES, FILL IN VALUES
No
Those are all of the questions I have. Thank you very much for your time and for your participation in these important programs, which are critical for the reporting of accurate and timely state and federal employment statistics by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
ADDITIONAL RESPONDENTS
QUARTERLY REPORT
Questionnaire Introduction
INTRO1. We recently (mailed/FAXed) you a letter with a copy of employment data that (your company/company name) provided for the monthly and quarterly reports last year. It will be useful to refer to while we speak. Do you have it available?
YES, Have Copy available è GO to INTRO3
No
INTRO2. I will have some questions about the employment data we included with the letter. It would be better if I sent you another copy that you could refer to. Can I verify your FAX number?
YES è Verify FAX number, make CALL BACK appt, FAX info
No (or no FAX) è Verify mail address, make call back appt, mail info
INTRO3. We are calling to find out more about how companies keep records and prepare employment counts for the monthly and quarterly reports. First, let me assure you that: CHECK AFTER READING TO RESPONDENT.
The purpose of this call is for statistical purposes only and quality control. This call is not involved with unemployment insurance tax system liability in any way. Your participation is voluntary, and you can decline to answer any questions. |
The information you provide will be held in confidence to the full extent permitted by law. Your firm will not be identified in any way. 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 OMB control number for this interview is: 1220-0011. You are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. |
INTRO4. To make the interview easier, Is there a common name that you use to refer to the monthly CES report, since I will be asking questions about it? How about the quarterly wage and tax report? (CATI PROGRAMMER: THESE COULD BE SUBSTITUTED IN QUESTIONS IN LIEU OF OTHER NAMES THAT ARE USED FOR THE REPORTS)
MONTHLY REPORT NAME: ________________________________________
QUARTERLY REPORT NAME: ________________________________________
Questionnaire
INTERVIEWER: QUESTIONS 1-14 MAY HAVE BEEN COMPLETED IN OTHER INTERVIEW, SO START AT Q15 IF THAT IS THE CASE).
Q1. First, I’d like to make sure that we have the correct worksite information. We’re looking at: (read identifiers for CES and/OR QCEW worksites; CAn REFER RESPONDENT TO EMPLOYMENT DATA Sheet). Do the reported numbers represent the same worksite, or is it possible they represent other worksites?
SAME Worksite
Other worksites
Don’t know
Q2. (Before we talk about the specific differences in the employment reports,) I’d like to ask some questions on payroll, company recordkeeping practices, and how employment numbers are prepared. First, do all of (your company/company name) employees appear on the same payroll or is there more than one payroll? (For example, sometimes hourly workers are on a different payroll than salaried workers or executives.)
SAME PAYROLL FOR ALL EMPLOYEES
MORE THAN ONE PAYROLL
Q3. Does (your company/company name) use the same or different payroll time periods for employees? (For example, sometimes one group of employees is paid monthly and another is paid weekly.)
SAME TIME PERIOD
DIFFERENT TIME PERIOD
IF Q2 IS MORE THAN ONE PAYROLL AND/OR Q3 IS DIFFERENT TIME PERIOD, GO TO Q5, OTHERWISE CONTINUE
Q4. How often does (your company/company name) pay employees?
Weekly
Bi-weekly (every other week)
Semi-monthly (twice a month)
Monthly
Other, please specify: __________________________
GO TO Q7
Q5. What employee groups are on different payrolls or have different pay periods? (ENTER GROUPS BELOW.) What type of pay period(s) are used for (EACH GROUP)—weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, monthly, or other?
Groups |
Weekly |
Bi-weekly |
Semi-monthly |
Monthly |
Other |
Group 1: _______________________ |
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Group 2: _______________________ |
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Group 3: _______________________ |
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Group 4: _______________________ |
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Group 5: _______________________ |
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Q6. Is (your company/company name) able to include employees from all pay groups in the monthly employment numbers for the quarterly UI report?
YES
NO è Which employee groups are not included? ________________
è Approximately how many employees are not included? _________
DON’T KNow
Q7. Does (your company/company name) prepare the payroll in-house, or does an outside person, organization, or service bureau prepare it?
In-house
Outside PERSON, org., service bureau
OTHER, specify: _____________________________________________
Q8. Are the monthly employment figures provided for the quarterly UI report obtained from the payroll or payroll reports?
YeS
YESèIF OUTSIDE PERSON, ORG., SERVICE BUREAU in Q7, GO TO Q13
Noè GO TO Q12
DON’T KNowè GO TO Q12
Q9. You said that the payroll is prepared in-house. Does (your company/company name) use a computer program/software program to prepare the payroll?
YES
No è GO TO Q12
Q10. Is the payroll software: a product that was developed internally for your own use, a product you lease or license from a software company, a commercially-available software package that your firm purchased, or something else?
Developed internally for own use è GO to Q17
Leased or licensed from a software company
Purchased commercially-available package
Other (describe) è GO to Q17
Q11. What company developed the software used to prepare the payroll? If not listed, cHECK "Other” AND WRITE IN nAME.
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Abra Payroll Software |
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Millennium Payroll |
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SLS Triad |
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CCS Accounting |
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Paychex |
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Software Plus |
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Checkmark Software |
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Peachtree Software |
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Tesseract |
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Data Pro Accounting Software |
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Pensoft Payroll Solutions |
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eBusinessPay by eBusinessLogic |
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Peoplesoft |
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Genesys |
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Quickbooks |
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LTtax |
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Red Wing Business Systems |
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other software company: |
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MasterTax |
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Sage Software |
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name:_______________ |
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MPay Services |
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SAP |
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Don't Know |
Go to Q17
Q12. Where does (your company/company name) get the monthly employment figures for the quarterly UI report? (PROBE WHETHER SOURCE IS ELECTRONIC AND RECORD FOR SELECTED CATEGORIES)
Human resources, personnel, or benefits records ( ELECTRONIC)
Time cards or attendance records ( ELECTRONIC)
Other, please specify: ______________________ ( ELECTRONIC)
Memory or personal knowledge
Don’t know
GO TO Q17
Q13. You said that the payroll is prepared by an outside organization. Would that be a payroll processing service, an accounting firm, the corporate or franchise headquarters, or something else?
Payroll Processing Service
Accounting Firm or accountantè GO to q15
Corporate/Franchise Headquartersè GO to Q15
Other (Describe) è GO to q15
Q14. What is the name of the payroll processing service (your company/company name) uses? CHECK NAME; If not listed, cHECK "Other” AND WRITE IN nAME.
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Accountix |
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Compupay |
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Perfect Software |
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Accupay |
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Davison |
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Platform One |
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ADP (Automated Data Processing) |
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J.D. Edwards |
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Precision Payroll |
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Advantage Payroll Services |
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Kronos |
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ProBusiness Services |
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Alpha Staff |
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Lawson |
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Quickbooks |
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Ameripay |
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National Payroll Service |
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Summitt Software |
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Certified Payroll Services |
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Paytime |
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Other PPF: |
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Ceridian |
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Paychex |
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name:____________ |
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Don't Know |
Q15. Do you/does the (FILL WITH Q13 ANSWER) prepare the quarterly UI report?
YES
No è GO to q17
Q16. Do you/does the (FILL WITH Q13 ANSWER) also submit the quarterly UI report, or does (your company/company name) submit it?
YES, outside firm/PPF submits CES reportè GO TO Q18
No, UNIT ITSELF submits CES reportè GO TO Q18
Don't know è GO TO Q18
Q17. (Do you/does your company/company name) have any existing program or report that is used every quarter to compile the quarterly UI report?
YES, èIF outside Organization, such as accountant, ask for name
of any software program used:_________________
No
Q18. Can you think of any changes to the software, reports, or other data sources used to compile the quarterly report that might have affected the monthly employment counts during 2006/07?
YES
No è GO TO Q21
DON’T KNOW è GO TO Q21
Q19. What types of changes?
Switched provider or software
Changed or added pay periods
Change or revision in reports
Other, please specify:
Q20. When were the changes made? MM: ____ YYYY: _________
Q21. (Do you/does your company/company name) clean up or purge employee records at the end of the calendar year or at any other specific time frame? (READ CATEGORIES IF NECESSARY.)
YES, END OF CALENDAR YEAR
YES, AFTER TAXES AND/OR W2 FORMS ARE COMPLETED
YES, END OF QUARTER
YES, END OF MONTH
YES, Other timeS, please specify: ____________________
Noè GO TO Q26
Don’t know è GO TO Q26
Q22. What type of employee records clean up or purging is done?
Q23. Is it done manually or automatically?
MANUALLY
AUTOMATICALLY
CHECK DIFFERENCE TYPE: IF TYPE OF DIFFERENCE = ‘NO DIFFERENCE’ GO TO Q26, OTHERWISE CONTINUE
Q24. For the next question can you refer to the employment table that we sent you (showing CES monthly and quarterly UI report employment). Is it likely that the records cleanup would explain any of the employment differences that are shown in the table (last row of table)?
YESè Which months would be affected? __________________________
Noè GO TO Q26
Q25. Would the cleanup affect employment for the monthly CES report, quarterly UI report, or both reports (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY)? Could you explain how it would affect the numbers?
MONTHLY CES REPORT ONLY ___________________________________________
QUARTERLY UI REPORT ONLY ___________________________________________
BOTH REPORTS ________________________________________________________
DON’T KNOW ABOUT MONTHLY CES REPORT
DON’T KNOW ABOUT QUARTERLY UI REPORT
DON’T KNOW ABOUT EITHER REPORT
Q26. What time period (do you/does your company/company name) use to provide the monthly UI employment counts? (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY.)
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED THE ENTIRE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED THE PAY PERIOD INCLUDING
THE 12TH OF THE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO ARE PAID DURING THE PAY PERIOD
INCLUDING THE 12TH OF THE MONTH
COUNT INCLUDES EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED DURING A PAY PERIOD OTHER THAN THE 12TH DAY OF THE MONTH
oTHER, PLEASE SPECIFY: __________________________________________
Don’t know
Q27. Is it likely that the in the monthly employment numbers for the quarterly UI report include persons who worked anytime during the month rather than just the (pay/time) period including the 12th?
YES
No
Don’t know
Q28. Is it likely that the in the monthly employment numbers for the quarterly UI report might include a count of the number of checks issued rather than the number of persons receiving pay? An example is if an employee received both a paycheck and a commission or bonus check, he or she could be counted twice.
YESè Would that occur in all or just some months? ____________
If just some months, which ones?: __________
No
Don’t know
Q29. We’re interested in finding out exactly who gets counted in the employee numbers. I’m going to read a list of different types of employees; please tell me if (your company/company name) usually has these types of employees. (CHECK YES OR NO BELOW IN COLUMN 1.)
Now, a followup question, are (EMPLOYEE TYPE) typically included in the monthly employment numbers for the quarterly UI report?
Employee Type |
(1) HAS Employee Type? |
(2) INCLUDED? |
Employees working in locations outside of the state |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees working in locations outside of US |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Trainees |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Seasonal or temporary employees |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Retired employees receiving pensions |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Part-time employees |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Executives or corporate officials |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees on paid vacation, sick, or other paid leave |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees who received bonus pay but who were not working |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Employees who received pay advances but who were not working |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Q30. The next groups of workers are slightly different. Please indicate if (your company/company name) has these types of workers, if they are included in the monthly employment for the UI quarterly report, and the type of tax form they receive.
Employee Type |
(1) HAS EMPLOYEE TYPE? |
(2) INCLUDED IN CES? |
(3) W2 OR 1099? |
Self-employed persons |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
W2 1099 DK |
Outside service providers (such as contractors and their employees) |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
W2 1099 NEITHER DK |
Real Estate/insurance/sales personnel working solely for commissions (ASK ONLY IF NAICS 524210, 531200) |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
W2 1099 DK |
Q31. Do you typically have any of the following types of employees who may be on (your company/company name) books, but who did not receive pay? A followup question, would they typically be included or excluded in the monthly employment numbers for the quarterly UI report?
Employee Type |
(1) HAS Employee Type? |
(2) INCLUDED? |
employees on family leave not receiving pay |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees on other leave without pay |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees on workers compensation or disability |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees available for work or on-call, but not working |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees on layoff or on strike |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who resigned, were terminated or were fired |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who received pay advances |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
employees not at work who received travel or other non-wage payments |
YES NO DK |
YES NO DK |
Q32. When does (your company/company name) typically complete the quarterly report?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Don't know
Q33. The quarterly tax report asks for employment for each month of the quarter. Does the data source used to complete the quarterly report contain separate employments counts for each individual month of the quarter?
YESè GO TO Q35
NO
Q34. How does (your company/company name) obtain the employment counts for the separate months contained in the quarterly report?
CHECK DIFFERENCE TYPE: IF TYPE OF DIFFERENCE = ‘NO DIFFERENCE’ GO TO END OF INTERVIEW, OTHERWISE CONTINUE
Q35. Finally, looking at the data table we sent with the monthly CES and Quarterly UI figures, there are some months with the same employment, and others that differ. (We have gone over some possible reasons for the differences.) Why do you think the figures are different?
WRITE IN RESPONDENT EXPLANATION:
1.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5.________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Q36. Do you think that either the CES monthly, quarterly UI tax, or both figures are incorrect?
Yes, CES monthly figure is incorrect
Yes, quarterly UI tax figure is incorrect
Yes, both figures are incorrect
No
Don’t know
Q37. (PULL UP GRID WITH EMPLOYMENT DIFFERENCES THAT WAS SENT TO RESPONDENT) Can you identify or provide what you think is/are the most accurate employment number(s) for the month(s) that differ the most? (INTERVIEWER: ATTEMPT TO GET CORRECT VALUES FOR THE LARGEST DIFFERENCES, AND THE DECEMBER 2006/JANUARY 2007 DIFFERENCES).
YES, FILL IN VALUES
No
Those are all of the questions I have. Thank you very much for your time and for your participation in these important programs, which are critical for the reporting of accurate and timely state and federal employment statistics by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
1 This instrument follows general PAPI conventions to make it easier to follow, i.e., text in CAPS is not read to respondents, while text in small case is. Also, if no skip pattern is noted, continue to the next question.
2 CATI PROGRAMMER: some respondents may start immediately talking about the differences, so it would be useful if the interviewer could be able to skip to Q53 (or Q35 in Quarterly report only instrument) here and actually at any time in the interview, and then be able to return back to wherever they are in questionnaire.
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Title | • |
| Author | MANNING_C |
| Last Modified By | MANNING_C |
| File Modified | 2007-10-04 |
| File Created | 2007-09-17 |