Column 16: Main Activity during Last Year.
99. First we want to know what has been the main activity of the person during the one year preceding the Census Night. Main Activity means the activity during 6 months (183 days) or more during the last one year (i.e. for the major part of the last year). Codes have been provided on the schedule itself which are to be used while answering this question.
99.1 The "employed" comprises all persons who were in the following categories for 6 months (183 days) or more during the last one year:
(b) Persons who during the reference period performed some work for wages, salary, profit or family gains in cash or kind.
(c) Persons who did not do any work for pay or profit during the reference period although they had a job to which they could return (e.g. off season workers like farmers or fishermen), those on sick leave or leave without pay, those who could not work due to strike or lockout in the organization they were working.
(d) Persons who were self-employed (e.g. running a shop by himself or herself, selling eatables, practicing as doctors, lawyers, etc.).
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99.3 What about men or women engaged in production of goods for own consumption?
Please note that the following activities for own consumption are treated as work:
(ii) Collection of water and firewood for own consumption.
(iii) The processing of primary commodities for own consumption by the producers of these items (such as drying own vegetables for later use).
(iv) Production of fixed assets for own use (such as building a house or rice paddy dike).
99.5 If you give Code 1 for a person after following the above instructions, you have to fill in Columns 17 to 21 which will be described subsequently. Please note that Col. 22 and Col. 23 also have to be filled in for an employed person (Code 1 in Col. 16). This will be explained separately later.
Unemployed
99.6 If a person (man or woman) is not employed you should ask whether he or she was unemployed for six months (or 183 days) or over during the last year. Unemployed refers to those who were without work but were seeking work or available for work.
99.7 Please note that home makers, students and others mainly engaged in non-economic activities during the reference period who satisfy the above criteria of unemployment should be regarded as unemployed and not as home makers, students ,etc. If a person returns that he/she is unemployed for the major part of the last year according to these criteria, you should ask whether the person was employed any time before he/she became unemployed. If he/she says Yes, you have to record Code 2 for the person in Column 16. On the other hand, if the person says that he/she was unemployed and seeking work for the first time and was never employed any time before, you should record Code 3 in Column 16. In the case of a person who was
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Population mainly not employed or unemployed
99.8 The employed and unemployed constitute the economically active population. Those who are not mainly employed or unemployed spend most of their time as home makers, students, etc. which are not considered as economically active. Use the codes given in the schedule for recording the category of people not economically active for six months (or 183 days) or more during the last year.
99.9 The economically not active categories for most of the time last year are explained below:
Student is a person who was mostly attending school/educational institution (with Code 2 in Column 14(a)). Give Code 5 for this category in Column 16.
Dependent: This category includes all dependents like infants and children not attending school, persons permanently disabled and hence cannot do any work and persons who cannot work because of illness or old age. Dependents will include able bodied persons who cannot be categorized in any other inactive category and are dependent on others. However if such a person was seeking or available for work, he or she should be categorized as unemployed and not as dependent. For people who were dependents give Code 6 in Column 16.
Rent-receiver, retired or other income recipients: A person who had retired from service and for most of the time was doing no other work, i.e. mostly not employed again in some work or not engaged in some other work such as cultivation, business, trade, etc., or a person who was for most of the time a rent-receiver or a person living on agricultural or nonagricultural royalty, rent or dividend who was neither employed nor unemployed, or any other person of independent means where he/she did not have to work would come under this category. You should give Code 7 in Column 16 for this category of inactive person.
Other, (specify): This category would include all persons not economically active for most of the time and who might not come under any of the above four categories. For such a person (e.g. beggar) you should give Code 8 and specify (e.g. 8 Beggar) in Column 16.