Page 264 - Special Topic Session (STS) - Volume 1

STS429 Valentina Stoevska

Statistical definition of employment in the
environmental sector and green jobs: Theory and
practice
Valentina Stoevska
International Labour Office, Department of Statistics

Abstract
The 19 International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS), Geneva, 2-11
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October 2013, adopted guidelines concerning statistical definition of
employment in the environmental sector and green jobs. The guidelines
defined the environmental sector as consisting of all economic units
producing, designing and manufacturing at least some goods and services for
the purposes of environmental protection and resource management. The
guidelines draws a distinction between employment in the production of
environmental goods and services for consumption by other economic units
(i.e. employment in production of environmental outputs) and for
consumption by the economic unit in which the activity is performed (i.e.
employment in environmental processes). Green jobs are specifically referred
to as a subset of employment in the environmental sector, meeting the
requirements of decent work.
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Following the 19 ICLS, a number of countries participated in pilot
programmes designed to test concepts and definitions presented in the
guidelines and new data collection methodologies.
This paper first will describe the main statistical concepts and definition of
employment in the environmental sector, present the results of the surveys in
Mongolia and Albania, and outline some of the challenges in generating data
through statistical surveys and monitoring the transition towards a green
economy. It will also highlight its possible application for assessing the
sustainability of the tourism industries.

Keywords
statistics framework; employment; environmental sector; green jobs;
international guidelines

1. Introduction
The concept of the green economy has become a focus of policy debate
in recent years and has been mainstreamed into the work of the United
Nations and its specialized agencies. Much of the discussion has focused on
the potential of the green economy to provide significant opportunities for
investment, growth, and jobs while addressing the global environmental
challenges, especially climate change. This has led to an increasing need for

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