[Questions 15-22 relate to persons aged 15 years or over]
Q.16 Occupation___
If at work, state here the usual principal occupation, giving a full description. In unemployed or retired, describe the principal occupation previously held. For students or persons at school, state the type (secondary, community, vocational, university, etc)
Question 16: Occupation
(i) If working, state the usual principal occupation (i.e., the one by which living is mainly earned).
(ii) If unemployed or retired, describe the principal occupation previously held.
(iii) In all cases describe the occupation fully and precisely, using any special name by which the job is known and stating the type of work done. The following are examples of the types of occupational descriptions which should be used: "Hosiery machine operator", "Dock laborer", "Gas fitter", "Ticket checker", "Woodworking machinist", "Builder's laborer", "Electrical fitter", "Goods checker", "Sound technician", "Civil engineer", "Garage foreman", "Radio mechanic", "Laboratory technician", "Electrical engineer", "Site foreman", "Motor mechanic". General terms such as "Machine operator", "Technician", "Laborer", "Engineer", "Fitter", "Foreman", "Checker", or "Mechanic" should not be used alone.
(iv) For civil servants and local government employees, the grade should be stated. For Army or Garda personnel, the rank should be stated.
(v) For teachers, the branch of teaching should be stated (e.g., "Primary teacher", "Vocational teacher", etc.)
(vi) For clergy and members of religious orders engaged in teaching or other service, a full description should be given, such as "Christian Brother, primary teacher", "Nun, general hospital nurse", etc.
(vii) For students or persons in school, state the type of school or institution (e.g. "Secondary", "Community", "Vocational", "University", etc.)
Q.15 to Q.20:
The questions on the person's position in regard to employment (questions 15-20) are the most difficult to check and require the most careful study. These Questions should be answered for each person aged 15 years and over (i.e., born on or before 13 April, 1971). For persons younger than 15, these questions should be ignored.
Q. 16: Occupation
You should study the relevant Note with particular care as it covers most of the usual difficulties experienced in answering this Question. The occupation must be given for every person in
Category 1, 3, or 6 on Question 15. The type of educational establishment being attended should be stated for a person in Category 4 at Question 15. You may observe apparent discrepancies between the answers to Questions 15 and 16 (e.g. an occupation stated at Question 16 for a person categorised as "At school, student" at Question 15) but you need not take any action in this regard. Note however, that there is a tendency for housewives to be described as "Home (or
domestic) duties" in reply to the question on occupation. Such an entry is a valid one only when it relates to a domestic servant and it should be struck out if it is given for a housewife.
You should ensure that the description of the occupation is precise. Following are examples of terms which are not sufficiently precise in themselves and of possible correct descriptions which should be entered in such cases:
[The table illustrating inadequate entry and possible correct entry has been omitted]
If in doubt as to how a particular occupation should be described, it is better to give a detailed description rather than to omit particulars which may be essential for purposes of valid statistical classification.