Rapid surveys are meant to respond to sudden data needs following a disaster or emergency. In many countries they were introduced, often with the support of international agencies, to satisfy the need for labour data arising from COVID-19’s effects on employment and on data collection. In some instances, this was done to substitute for labour force surveys. Rapid surveys can be quantitative or qualitative but generally have the common properties of short turnaround times, brief questionnaires, small sample sizes, and limitations in their sampling frames and survey design.

This brief is targeted at employment policy makers and practitioners including representatives of employer and worker organizations. It is also useful for ILO specialists at the global and local level involved with employment diagnostics and employment policy formulation. It focuses on providing guidance on the proper use of data from rapid surveys (and not on how to conduct rapid surveys). This includes the assessment of data quality, appropriate data analysis, and the interpretation and communication of findings. Specific attention is given to the role of evidence in the labour policy formulation process, and how this role changed in the COVID era with the emergence of rapid survey data.