For those 10 years of age or older
[Applies to section D]
15. Principal occupation
Only for those who answered 1, 2 or 3 in question 14.
What occupation, position or type of work did you perform during the week of April 12th to the 17th, or in the last job you had?
____ Principal occupation
Economic characteristics
The questions included in this section (type of activity, principal occupation, industry, and employment status) are designed to investigate the population that participates in the production of goods and economic services, the occupational structure, the economic sector where the occupations are carried out, employment status, and the related demographic and social characteristics. The structure of the population that does not participate in the production of goods and economic services and demographic and social characteristics of this population are also investigated.
[p. 57]
Because of these objectives, questions 14, 15, 16, and 17 are only presented to those persons age 10 or older.
Question #15: Principal occupation
This question is only presented to those classified in alternatives 1, 2, and 3 in question 14.
a. How to ask the question:
What occupation, trade, or type of work did the person carry out during the week of April 12-17 or for the last employment held?
If the person claims to have carried out more than one occupation, the principal occupation is selected.
[p. 60]
"Principal occupation" refers to the occupation to which more hours are dedicated.
When dealing with a person who was previously employed but did not work during the week of April 12-17, the following question is asked:
What was the last occupation carried out?
b. How to record the information:
In the space provided, the principal occupation is recorded.
A word exactly describing the type of work indicated by the person should be used when recording the occupation. If a word is not sufficient, a sentence should be used.
Generic terms that do not give a clear idea of the work carried out should not be used (e.g. laborer, worker, employee, etc.).
To further illustrate, a list of examples of inappropriate terms along with appropriate terms is provided below:
[The list of examples is omitted]
[p. 61]
Finally, it is necessary to establish that in the case of professionals, the occupation corresponds to the profession. However, a certain number of professionals can have carried out occupations outside of their specialization during the week of reference. In this case, the occupation carried out is recorded, not the profession; e.g., if a medical surgeon acted as a hospital director, this occupation is recorded; if a lawyer acted as a manager of a textile company, this occupation is recorded, not the profession.
c. Examples:
[These instructions refer to a graph of question 15 on the census form]