4.5: The Establishment Survey

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) uses two key monthly surveys to track employment in the United States. The first is the household survey, also known as the Current population survey or CPS, which collects information from households. The other is the establishment survey, also known as the Current Employment Statistics Survey or CES, where information is collected from business establishments.

Most data in the CES is collected through telephone interviews or online reporting by participating businesses. The CES collects employment-related data such as the number of employees on the firm's payrolls, the average weekly hours, the average weekly earnings, the average hourly earnings, and the number of women employees.

The data collected from CES is particularly useful in analyzing employment trends by industry, such as retail, education, and construction.

One key difference between the CES and the CPS is that the CPS includes groups not covered by the CES, such as self-employed individuals. For instance, a doctor running her own clinic is considered employed in the CPS but is not counted in the CES since she does not appear on another firm’s payroll.

Because they measure different aspects of employment, the CPS and CES may yield different employment figures. However, together they provide a comprehensive picture of the labor market.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics relies on two monthly surveys to measure employment levels and trends. These are the Current Population Survey, or CPS, which is a survey of households, and the Current Employment Statistics survey, or CES, which is a survey of business establishments.

In the CES, data is collected from over 100,000 businesses throughout the United States.

Most CES data are collected through telephone interviews or online reporting by participating businesses.

This data provides estimates of the number of workers firms have on their payrolls and other metrics, including employees’ average weekly hours and earnings.

The survey also provides detailed employment trends across industry sectors such as retail, education, and construction.

The two surveys—CPS and CES —may provide different employment estimates. For example, a self-employed person, such as a doctor running her clinic, is counted as employed in the CPS. However, she is excluded from the CES.

This difference is why both surveys are essential. The CPS is better at capturing the total number of unemployed people to calculate the unemployment rate, while the CES provides a more precise and timely measure of jobs by industry.