1. The data provided in this release is based on the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1642 specifying the technical characteristics of the 2022 ad hoc subject ‘job skills’ and the eight-yearly variables on ‘pension and labour market participation’ in the labour force domain in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/1700 of the European Parliament and of the Council. The data was partly financed through EU grants.

2. During 2023, the ad hoc module was carried out on a sample of persons taking part in the LFS survey for the first and fourth time. The target population comprised individuals aged 50 to 74 years living in private households during the reference period.

3. The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is carried out on an ongoing basis using a quarterly gross sample of 3,200 private households. The objective is to have a continuous assessment of labour market trends given that the reference weeks are evenly spread throughout the 13 weeks of the quarter. One-fourth of the sample is made up of households who have been selected to participate in the LFS for the first time. Three-fourths of the quarterly sample is made up of households who were selected to participate in the survey in previous instances, either one quarter before, or one year before, or one year and a quarter before (2-(2)-2). All criteria used for this survey match international methodologies used by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

4. The LFS is designed to satisfy the concepts and definitions as outlined by Eurostat. This allows the comparability of results with other EU member states and countries following ILO definitions of employment and unemployment. Occupations are classified according to the ISCO-08 classification (International Standard Classification of Occupations) whereas the economic activity is classified according to NACE Rev. 2 (Nomenclature générale des Activités économiques dans les Communautés Européennes). Education attainment is classified according to ISCED 2011.

5. Definitions:

● Disability benefit: refers to an income which is provided to persons below the legal retirement age whose ability to work and earn money is impaired by a physical or mental disability. It also includes rehabilitation services and early retirement benefits.

● Early retirement pension: refers to persons who retire before their legal retirement age.

● Educational attainment:

secondary or less level of education: comprising persons with no schooling, primary education, schools for children with special needs and persons who attained a secondary level education and have less than 2 ordinary level qualifications or equivalent. In the context of the ISCED classification, this includes ISCED 0 to 2;
post-secondary level of education: comprising persons with a secondary level education and having 2 ordinary level qualifications or equivalent or more, and persons with a post-secondary level attainment who have obtained at least 1 intermediate or advanced level qualification or equivalent. In the context of the ISCED classification, this refers to ISCED 3 and 4;
tertiary level of education: comprising persons with a tertiary level education and with qualifications ranging from diploma to doctorate level. In the context of the ISCED classification, this refers to ISCED 5 to 8.

● Employed persons: all persons aged 15 to 74 years, who during the reference week, were in one of the following categories:

worked for at least 1 hour for pay or profit, including contributing family workers and paid casual work;
persons with a job or business who were temporarily not at work during the reference week but had an attachment to their job, including;
(a) persons not at work due to holidays, working time arrangements, sick leave, maternity or paternity leave;
(b) persons in job-related training or formal education;
(c) persons on parental leave, either receiving and/or being entitled to job-related income or benefits, or whose parental leave is expected to be 3 months or less;
(d) seasonal workers during the off-season, where they continue to regularly perform tasks and duties for the job or business, excluding fulfilment of legal or administrative obligations;
(e) persons temporarily not at work for other reasons where the expected duration of the absence is 3 months or less.
unpaid family workers: refers to people who worked without pay in a family business or farm. Excluded from this definition are housewives.

● Health: refers to the self-perceived state of health and includes different dimensions of health, such as physical and emotional functioning, mental health and biomedical signs and symptoms.

● Occupation:

highly skilled non-manual: refers to ISCO 08 group codes 1 to 3 (Managers, Professionals and Technicians and associate professionals);
low skilled non-manual: refers to ISCO 08 group codes 4 and 5 (Clerical support workers and Service and sales workers);
skilled manual: refers to ISCO 08 group codes 6 to 8 (Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers, Craft and related trades workers and Plant and machine operators and assemblers).

● Pensions: refers to regular payments, typically received monthly, and including individuals who receive pensions from abroad. The following types of pensions are included:

statutory pension: refers to an income provided by the Department of Social Security and it is based on an individual’s employment history.This category includes: Decreased National Minimum Pension, Increased Retirement Pension, National Minimum Pension/Increased National Minimum Pension, Retirement Pension, Two-thirds Pension, Old-age Pension, Foreign Pensions;
occupational pension: is a pension paid to public officers who joined the Public Service of Malta prior to 15 January 1979. Police, Armed Forces, Civil Protection Officers and Prison Guards are entitled to an occupational pension upon completion of 25 years of service. For the scope of this module, occupational pensions were considered as one type of old age pensions;
personal pension: refers to any plan, fund, or private scheme where individuals voluntarily invest throughout their life to generate additional income upon retirement. These pensions are typically managed by a pension fund or financial institution and do not include life insurance policies;
disability pension: Payable to individuals who are permanently unable to engage in suitable full-time or regular part-time employment. Examples include Invalidity Pension, Injury Pension, Decreased national invalidity pension, Increase injury pension, National minimum invalidity pension, Blind pension, Disability/Severely Disability Pension. Once the age of this recipient reaches the legal retirement age, s/he should be considered as receiving an old age pension.

● Pension with reduction in case of anticipated pension benefit: refers to a person who left the labour market before the time he/she was entitled to his/her “full” pension benefit and thus received a decreased pension.

● Pension with bonus due to retirement deferment: refers to a person who kept working to get an increased rate which is obtainable if he/she retires after the requirements to receive a “full” pension benefit are met. 

● Retirement age: refers to the age at which individuals first received their pension . The retirement age varies based on the year of birth for different cohorts:

before 1952: Men: 61 years; Women: 60 years (Option 61 years);
in 1952 to 1955: 62 years;
in 1956 to 1958: 63 years;
in 1959 to 1962: 64 years;
from 1962 onwards: 65 years.

6. Key

     :  Unreliable – less than 20 sample observations.
     ^U Under represented – between 20 and 49 sample observations.

7. Percentage totals may not add up due to rounding.

8. Absolute changes between one survey estimate and another must be treated with caution since minor changes (i.e. less than 2,500 persons) might be the result of sampling error.

9. More information relating to this news release may be accessed at:

Sources and Methods
Statistical Concepts
Metadata
ISCO Classification
NACE Classification
ISCED Classification

10. References to this news release are to be cited appropriately. For guidance on access and re-use of data please visit our dedicated webpage.

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