Labour Force Survey (LFS) - Upcoming revisions
Following the release of final population estimates from each census, a standard revision is applied to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates. The revised estimates are scheduled to be released on CANSIM in early February 2015, and will include the following:
- LFS data will be adjusted to reflect the 2011 Census population estimates and will be revised back to 2001. LFS data are currently based on estimates from the 2006 Census.- Geographic boundaries will be updated to the 2011 Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) from the current 2006 SGC. This change will slightly modify the boundaries of some Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) and Economic Regions (ERs).
- Three ERs will be combined for data quality reasons.
- New CANSIM tables will be created for all sub-provincial areas based on the 2011 census boundaries and the data series will be available for 2001 onward. A concordance table for the CANSIM vectors will be provided prior to release.
While the overall imputation strategy will not be changed, the revisions will include an update to the variables used to create the imputation groups to reflect both current response patterns and relationships between key variables. In early February 2015, these changes will be implemented historically, starting in January 2008.- LFS data will be adjusted to reflect the 2011 Census population estimates and will be revised back to 2001. LFS data are currently based on estimates from the 2006 Census.- Geographic boundaries will be updated to the 2011 Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) from the current 2006 SGC. This change will slightly modify the boundaries of some Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) and Economic Regions (ERs).
- Three ERs will be combined for data quality reasons.
- New CANSIM tables will be created for all sub-provincial areas based on the 2011 census boundaries and the data series will be available for 2001 onward. A concordance table for the CANSIM vectors will be provided prior to release.
Key labour market trends as well as rates of unemployment, employment and participation will be essentially unchanged as a result of these updates, and most changes to estimates will be minor.
Note that these revisions will not include updates to the classification structures for industry and occupation. These updates will take place in January 2016.
Sample redesign
Every ten years, the LFS undergoes a sample redesign to reflect changes in population and labour market characteristics, as well as new definitions of geographical boundaries. The redesigned sample will be introduced starting in January 2015 and will be fully implemented by June 2015.
