(Washington, D.C.)-United States Representatives Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and a bipartisan group of legislators - including the co-chairs of the Congressional Women’s Caucus and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi - today sent a letter to the Bureau of Labor Statistics asking the agency to reconsider its recent decision to discontinue data collection on women workers in the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program.

The CES survey of payroll records provides detailed industry data on employment, hours and earnings of non-farm workers on a monthly basis. The payroll survey is considered the most reliable source for tracking changes in month-to-month employment and covers more than 300,000 businesses.

“The value of this data far outweighs the burden of providing it,” said Van Hollen. “No one questions the importance of minimizing needless respondent burden -- but eliminating vital information about women’s employment is the wrong thing to cut.”

“I oppose the change proposed by the Department of Labor to discontinue data collection on the number of women in the Current Employment Statistics program,” said DeLauro. “This is crucial information for policymakers and researchers regarding women's employment and unemployment on a month-to-month basis. Without this data, we would not have a complete picture of employment changes in our country.”

The text of the letter follows:

January 25, 2005

Commissioner Kathleen P. Utgoff Bureau of Labor Statistics Postal Square Building 2 Massachusetts Ave., NE Washington, DC 20212-0001

Dear Commissioner Utgoff:

We are writing to express our concern about the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ recently announced decision to discontinue data collection on women workers in the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey after July 2005.

As you know, the CES survey of payroll records covers over 300,000 businesses and provides detailed industry data on employment, hours, and earnings of non-farm workers on a monthly basis. As such, it represents a critical, ongoing source of employment information for policymakers and researchers. With a gender breakdown, the payroll survey is capable of painting a reliable picture of where women are working across industries and business cycles. Without a gender breakdown, that picture becomes far more difficult to obtain.

In that regard, we do not believe the Current Population Survey (CPS) is an adequate substitute for the CES in this area. While the CPS is valuable for other types of information, its smaller sampling size produces a greater margin for error than the CES survey, as the Bureau itself has noted. Moreover, the CPS’ reliance on household interviews introduces the possibility of subjective reporting bias that does not exist with the payroll survey.

While we appreciate the Bureau’s interest in continuously evaluating and improving the data it collects, as well as reducing respondent burden, we believe the compilation of women worker data in the CES survey represents a critical component of the Bureau’s work. Therefore, we respectfully request that you reconsider this decision and continue publishing women worker information in the CES after July 2005.

Thank you for your consideration of this request.

Sincerely,

Chris Van Hollen Rosa L. DeLauro Shelley Moore Capito Louise Slaughter Nancy Pelosi Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Ginny Brown-Waite John Dingell George Miller Steve Israel Maxine Waters Julia Carson Carolyn McCarthy Lynn C. Woolsey Tammy Baldwin Jerrold Nadler Anthony D. Weiner Dale E. Kildee Barbara Lee Neil Abercrombie Pete Stark Raul M. Grijalva Carolyn Maloney Juanita Millender-McDonald Grace F. Napolitano Eleanor Holmes Norton Hilda L. Solis Loretta Sanchez Debbie Wasserman Schultz Diane E. Watson Ellen O. Tauscher Jose E. Serrano Michael H. Michaud Linda T. Sanchez Steven R. Rothman Allyson Y. Schwartz Martin T. Meehan John W. Olver Eddie Bernice Johnson William D. Delahunt Lloyd Doggett Danny K. Davis Ben Chandler Susan Davis Janice D. Schakowsky Major R. Owens Timothy H. Bishop John F. Tierney Robert E. Andrews Sander M. Levin Dennis J. Kucinich Ron Kind Rush D. Holt Sam Farr Barney Frank Ruben Hinojosa Gwen Moore Albert R. Wynn Brian Baird Nydia M. Velasquez Judy Biggert Lois Capps