[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 246 (Friday, December 20, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Page 67350]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-32365]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Proposed Collection; Comment Request
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance
consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies
with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing
collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This program helps to
ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format,
reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized,
collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of
collection requirements on respondents can be assessed properly.
Currently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comment
concerning the proposed reinstatement of the ``Work Schedules
Supplement to the Current Population Survey.''
A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be
obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the addressee
section of this notice.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the
addressee section below on or before February 18, 1997.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in
comments which:
Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used:
Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submissions of responses.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to Karin G. Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer,
Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 3255,
2 Massachusetts Avenue, N.E., Washington, DC 20212. Ms. Kurz can be
reached on (202) 606-7628 (this is not a toll free number).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
I. Background
The Current Population Survey (CPS) has been the principal source
of the official Government statistics on employment and unemployment
for over 50 years. Over the past several decades, the economy of the
United Stats has been undergoing a fundamental restructuring. Advances
in computer and communications technology increasingly have enabled
some workers to perform part or all of their work at home. The growth
of this phenomenon represents an important development in this
country's labor markets. This supplement will provide a comprehensive
and objective set of data about telecommuting, work at home, and work
in home-based businesses, as well as valuable new information on work
schedules. The work schedules supplement will provide information on
the work schedules of employed persons, that is, the beginning and
ending times of work, type of shift worked, and calendar days worked.
It also will provide information about employed persons who work at
home.
II. Current Actions
Work schedule supplements have been conducted since the 1970s.
Questions on home-based work were included in May 1985 and again in May
1991. Due to changes in the questionnaire, however, work at home data
for 1991 were not comparable to data from the 1985 survey. While the
1991 supplement has provided a valuable source of data on work
schedules and work at home, it furnishes no information on trends in
work at home. A key purpose of the May 19976 collection is to provide a
point of comparison. This will enable the BLS and other researchers to
examine the changes in work schedules and work at home that are taking
place over time.
Type of Review: Reinstatement, with change, of a previously
approved collection for which approval has expired.
Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Title: May 1997 Work Schedules Supplement to CPS.
OMB Number: 1220-0119.
Affected Public: Individuals.
Total Respondents: 48,000 households.
Frequency: Monthly.
Total Responses: 48,000 households.
Average Time Per Response: 4.5 Minutes.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 3,600 Hours.
Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0
Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): $0.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget
approval of the information collection request; they also will become a
matter of public record.
Signed at Washington, D.C., this 16th day of December, 1996.
W. Stuart Rust, Jr.,
Acting Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor
Statistics.
[FR Doc. 96-32365 Filed 12-19-96; 8:45 am]
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