The UK’s ONS is changing the way it engages with Generation Z—and it’s working
Gen Z is notoriously elusive. Have you ever tried calling someone on the phone?
It’s a problem that is plaguing the UK’s official statistics tracker, the Office for National Statistics. Public agencies are responsible for tracking a number of important data points, including labor market activity, which has become increasingly difficult due to Gen Z’s reluctance to use their phones.
So the ONS decided to change its approach. They donated the prize money to participants and instead conducted in-person interviews in the hope that it might increase response rates. And voila—it worked.
Money talks and younger age groups have responded to the ONS’s new methods for the Labor Force Survey, which looks at employment status in the UK and is the largest household study country.
Cash rewards, in addition to reaching more young people and doing so repeatedly, also receive an increasing response, Liz McKeown, director of economic statistics at the ONS, told Bloomberg in a report. in all age groups. Third edition.
She added that the new plan with a series “recovery” measures helped drive the changes. That includes prioritizing households with young adults and expanding the sample size.
An ONS spokesman said the statistics agency also uses paid and unpaid business surveys, which offer an unconditional monetary incentive of 25 pounds ($31.40) per household. households and an additional £25 for households completing the survey. Luck.
Since the new method took effect, the number of avg Household interviews have increased down to 1,539 between January and March, compared with 1,168 between October and December last year.
That bodes well for the Bank of England, which makes key monetary policy decisions based on these numbers. The central bank used average earnings figures and other labor market indicators to understand the UK’s economic situation.
There is no exaggerating the importance of official statistics. They are vital in checking the pace of the UK economy as labor market data helps banks when setting interest rates. But recently, jobs data has become increasingly unreliable due to the shrinking number of respondents, which eventually forced the ONS to abandon its century-old methods in favor of these new techniques. .
Gen Zers, many of whom are early in their careers or new to the job market, have especially difficult access to data.
“If you think about the people who are least time-wealthy, they tend to be younger people,” said Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics production and analysis at the ONS. told Bloomberg.
The spokesperson said that while busy and unresponsive Gen Z was the main reason why the ONS had to rethink its data collection, the new measures would also apply to other age groups. Luck. The only difference? The “following factor” plays a larger role among younger respondents.
The statistics office has refrained from using online methods to collect data until recently—they are now testing a new system that includes quarterly data sets with 165% more individuals than before. with before.
The UK is not the only country facing difficulties in reaching its younger population. In the United States, the problem is getting worse, especially for young adults who do not live with their families. their parents.
It’s clear that Gen Z needs more incentive to participate in labor surveys than previous generations. While it seems to be working right now, Gen Alpha could appear and react to things differently than its predecessors.
