The Business Register

1
The Business Register

• Research, Design and Evaluation Division
• Statistical Institute of Jamaica

2
Background

• The Business Register is a structured list of
  establishments operating in Jamaica. It forms the
  basis of selection for statistical inquiries and
  for the calculation of estimates of attributes
  for the business population.
• Establishments are organized by industry and
  assigned an activity code based on the 2005
  Jamaica Industrial Classification.
• The Business Register exists primarily for the
  purpose of supplying a framework for all economic
  surveys. It is designed to
• Serve as a frame for the selection of
  establishment surveys
• Consistently classify statistical reporting units
  i.e. establishments
• Serve as a data source for compiling demographic
  information about businesses.
• Establishments engaged in agriculture and
  entities in Government fall outside the scope of
  the Business Register.

3
Background

• The Business Register is currently housed in a
  D-Base 2 relational database.
• It utilizes IBMs Websphere Application Server
  (WAS) as the application interface to users.
• The application is integrated with SAS
  (Statistical Analysis Software) for conducting
  database queries.

4
Economic Units of the Business Register

• The Establishment
• The Establishment is an economic unit that is
• engaged under single ownership
• in predominantly one kind of economic activity
• at a single physical location.
• The Enterprise
• The Enterprise is an economic unit that has
• control of more than one establishment
• more than one location
• more than one economic activity.

5
Data Captured Sources Periodicity
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details CREU Survey Ongoing
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details Companies Office of Jamaica Monthly
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details National Housing Trust (NHT) Annually
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details General Consumption Tax (GCT) Returns Monthly, Quarterly, Annually
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details Professional Business Associations Annually
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details Telephone Directories Annually
Business Identification Legal Trading Name Address Contact Person Contact Details Newspapers other Electronic Media Daily
Year of Commencement CREU Survey Ongoing
Type of Organization Single Establishment Branch of another Estab. Head Office Subsidiary CREU Survey Ongoing
Type of Organization Single Establishment Branch of another Estab. Head Office Subsidiary Companies Office of Jamaica Monthly
6
Data Captured Sources Periodicity
Employment Details of Full-time Workers of Part-time Workers of Contract Workers of Seasonal Workers of Family Workers Surveys CREU, Employment Earnings and Production Ongoing
Employment Details of Full-time Workers of Part-time Workers of Contract Workers of Seasonal Workers of Family Workers National Housing Trust (NHT) Annually
Legal Form Sole Proprietor Partnership Company Cooperative CREU Survey Ongoing
Type of Ownership Private Enterprise Government Enterprise CREU Survey Ongoing
7
Data Captured Sources Periodicity
Economic Activity Main Activity Secondary Activity CREU Survey Ongoing
Economic Activity Main Activity Secondary Activity Companies Office of Jamaica Monthly
Economic Activity Main Activity Secondary Activity General Consumption Tax (GCT) Returns Monthly, Quarterly, Annually
Economic Activity Main Activity Secondary Activity Professional Business Associations Annually
Economic Activity Main Activity Secondary Activity Telephone Directories Annually
Economic Activity Main Activity Secondary Activity Newspapers other Electronic Media Daily
Foreign Ownership CREU Survey Ongoing
Foreign Ownership Companies Office of Jamaica Monthly
Branch Subsidiary Details CREU Survey Ongoing
Branch Subsidiary Details Newspapers other Electronic Media Daily
8
Mode of Classification

• Establishments are ordered and classified by
• Main Economic Activity in accordance with the
  Jamaica Industrial Classification (JIC) 2005.
• Employment Size
• Less than 10 employees (Micro Small
  Establishments)
• 10 49 employees (Medium Establishments)
• 50 and more employees (Large Establishments)
• Geographic Location
• By Parish

9
General Maintenance Procedures

• Identifying Business Prospects (potential
  establishments for inclusion on the BR)
• Administering the CREU survey
• Updating records from Survey feedback
• Cross-checking data from sources against the
  existing BR
• Conducting verification
• Assigning of classification codes
• Taking and storing snapshots

10
Updating of Records

• Adding births and removing deaths
• Updating contact information
• Updating employment details
• Updating classification codes
• Updating other business demography
• Updating links between economic units
• Removing duplicates

11
Validation of Data

• The main means of validation of the
  establishments listed on the Business Register
  are
• The CREU Survey
• Telephone verification
• Data from the Companies Office of Jamaica

12
Challenges

• Populating the register of the lt10 Business Frame
• Demanding
• Dynamic
• Costly
• Issues with Under-coverage
• Keeping the register current
• Time-stamping of Business deaths
• Duplicate records in the database
• Creating a unique identifier for all
  establishments on the Business Register.

13
The Business Register as at January 24, 2013
Number of Employees Number of Establishments
Under 10 Employees 4251
10 - 49 Employees 2601
50 and over Employees 607
TOTAL 7459
14
Distribution by Industry
INDUSTRY OF ESTABLISHMENTS Percent ()
Mining and Quarrying 23 0.31
Manufacturing 837 11
Electricity, Gas and Water Supply 9 0.12
Construction 315 4
Wholesale and Retail Trade Repair of Motor Vehicles, Motorcycles and Personal and Household Goods 3229 44
Hotels and Restaurants 429 6
Transport, Storage and Communications 452 6
Financial Intermediation 207 3
Real Estate, Renting and Business Activities 1191 16
Education 206 3
Health and Social Work 161 2
Other Community, Social and Personal Service Activities 299 4
Private Households with Employed Persons 11 0.15