Uses and analysis of the ILO October Inquiry data on occupational wages and hours of work

The purpose of this article is to describe and explain the various types of data provided by countries, and discuss how they might be used in analysis, in particular, for comparing occupational wage rates and earnings. The issues chosen for illustration do not cover all the possible uses to which the October Inquiry data can be put, but concentrate on the issues that are the most important and the most frequently raised.