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The Committee notes the Government's report as well as the attached information. It requests the Government to supply further information on the following points.

Article 3 of the Convention. The Committee notes that the Government's report refers again to the role of the Consumer Price Index Advisory Committee, which brings together representatives of workers, employers, traders, consumers and the Government for consultation and advice in the revision and updating of the consumer price index. Regarding statistics covered by Articles 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15, the report states that the concepts, definitions and methodology used in respect of these statistics are those recommended by the different international conferences of labour statisticians. However, the Committee draws the Government's attention to the obligation under Article 3 to consult the representative organizations of workers and employers when the concepts, definitions and methodology used are designed or revised. It again asks the Government to indicate precisely, for each of Articles 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15, the manner in which the representative organizations of employers and workers are consulted.

Article 7. Noting that no data on the economically active population, employment and unemployment have been received at the ILO since the results of the first Labour Force Survey conducted in 1995, the Committee requests the Government to send to the ILO the statistical data as soon as practicable, in accordance with Article 5.

Article 9. Further to its previous request, the Committee notes the Government's indication that it is not felt appropriate, for the time being, to increase the range of data collected through the establishment survey referred to under Article 9(1) (to cover, in particular, earnings and hours data by sex) for fear of the additional response burden and decrease in response rate. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any future developments in this field.

Article 10. The Committee notes that data on the distribution of employees by level of earnings, hours of work and sex, and on the distribution of the employed population by hours of work, industry, occupation and sex, were derived from the 1995 Labour Force Survey. It notes however that statistics on the composition of earnings and hours of work are not published. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information with regard to the compilation of statistics on the composition of earnings and hours of work by main components.

Article 12. The Committee again requests the Government to communicate to the ILO the monthly consumer price indices (all items and food group) in accordance with Article 5.

Article 13. The Committee requests the Government to continue communicating the results and methodological description for the 1996-97 household budget survey to the ILO as soon as practicable, in accordance with Articles 5 and 6.

Article 14. With regard to statistics of occupational injuries, the Committee notes with interest the information supplied with respect to the different notification and compensation schemes relating to occupational injuries and the statistics of occupational injuries supplied along with the report. It also notes that the international recommendations concerning statistics of occupational injuries appear to be followed (in accordance with Article 2). The Committee requests the Government to provide more detailed information concerning the newly established system of notification of occupational injuries to the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations under section 63 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Welfare Act, 1998, in particular its coverage and the concepts and definitions used. It also requests the Government to send information regarding the publication of the statistics and of the methods used to compile the statistics (in accordance with Articles 5 and 6).

With regard to statistics of occupational diseases, the Committee notes with interest the statistics of occupational diseases provided along with the report, and requests the Government to supply information concerning the guidelines followed for the compilation of these statistics (in accordance with Article 2). It also requests the Government to provide information regarding the publication and the methodology of these statistics (in accordance with Articles 5 and 6).

Article 15. The Committee notes that, in the compilation of statistics of strikes and lockouts, the relevant international recommendations appear to have been followed (in accordance with Article 2), and that these statistics will shortly be published (in accordance with Article 5). It requests the Government to supply information regarding the publication of the methods used to compile the statistics (in accordance with Article 6).

Article 16. Recalling that the Government did not accept the obligations of Article 11, the Committee would be grateful to the Government for supplying information on the position of its law and practice and any future developments concerning statistics of labour cost, in accordance with Article 16(4).