According to its mission statement, "The Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS) produces some of the Nation's most sensitive and
important economic data. The BLS is an independent national
statistical agency within the Department of Labor responsible for
measuring labor market activity, working conditions and price
changes in the economy."
Much like the Census Bureau in the Department of Commerce, the BLS
collects, analyzes and distributes important economic information
that is the basis for legislation, policy decisions and a wide range
of other functions important to the economy and labor market. BLS
data is key to measuring the real-world effects of the 2008-2009
recession on American workers and families.
Congress established the bureau in 1884, charging it to
"collect information upon the subject of labor, its relation to
capital, the hours of labor and the earnings of laboring men and
women, and the means of promoting their material, social,
intellectual and moral prosperity."
Its data collection and reporting covers four major areas:
-
Labor Force Statistics - Including up-to-date information on the
size of the U.S. labor force, employment, unemployment at the
national, state and local levels. These reports include projections
about the labor force by industry and occupation.
- Prices and Cost of Living - Measurements of price changes
in the economy, including publication of the widely-cited Consumer
Price Index, the Producer Price Index, U.S. Import Price Indexes
and the Consumer Expenditure Survey.
- Compensation and Working Conditions - Tracking wages,
salaries and benefits in major labor markets and industries, as
well as data on work-related injuries and fatalities.
- Productivity and Technology - Tracking productivity
trends in industry and economic sectors, as well as comparisons of
U.S. productivity, pay and unemployment/employment in an
international context.
More on: Bureau of Labor Statistics
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