The primary source is the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) database. To improve cross-country comparability, UNIDO has standardized the coverage of establishments to those with five or more employees.
The concepts and definitions are in accordance with the International Recommendations for Industrial Statistics, published by the United Nations. The term employees refers to two categories defined by the UN: employees and persons engaged. The term employees excludes working proprietors, active business partners, and unpaid family workers, whereas the term persons engaged includes them. Most countries report data on employees, but some, as indicated in the Notes column, report data on persons engaged. Both terms exclude homeworkers. The number of employees or persons engaged usually refers to the average number employed throughout the year.
Real earnings per employee (wages and salaries) covers all payments in cash or kind made by the employer during the year, in connection with work done. The payments include (a) all regular and overtime cash payments, bonuses, and cost of living allowances, (b) wages and salaries paid during vacation and sick leave, (c) taxes and social insurance contributions and the like, payable by the employees and deducted by the employer, and (d) payments in kind.
The value of gross real output per employee is estimated on the basis of either production or shipments. On the production basis, it consists of (a) the value of all products of the establishment, (b) the value of industrial services rendered to others, (c) the value of goods shipped in the same condition as received, (d) the value of electricity sold, and (e) the net change between the value of work-in-progress at the beginning and the end of the reference period. In the case of estimates compiled on a shipment basis, the net change between the beginning and the end of the reference period in the value of stocks of finished goods is also included. Value added is defined as the current value of gross output less the current cost of (a) materials, fuels, and other supplies consumed, (b) contract and commission work done by others, (c) repair and maintenance work done by others, and (d) goods shipped in the same condition as received.