Counting Artists in Federal Data
Grantmakers in the Arts
We are writing to share a timely opportunity to change how artist occupations are counted and understood in the United States.
We hope that you might agree and share comments with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and share this email with individuals in your network.
This opportunity focuses on the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system, which reflects all occupations in the national economy, including those aligned with artist occupations. The SOC provides standards that affect data collection and reports of many federal agencies, including labor statistics and the population census. The SOC impacts data used for myriad purposes by individuals, businesses, educators, and policymakers, among others.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is inviting recommendations for changes to the Standard Occupational Classification system.
The deadline for comments is August 12, 2024.
Please note that each of us could submit recommendations reflecting our experience and expertise and each person's submission would be equally reviewed and weighted.
United States Artists has commissioned Joanna Woronkowicz to conduct a brief study on the occupational identifications of artists to make research-based recommendations for improving how the SOC classifies and reports on artist occupations. We are sharing the research and recommendations in the hope that our findings may assist you in providing your recommendations to the Bureau of Labor Statistics before August 12.
Why does this matter?
More accurate data collection of artist occupations can establish better data reflecting various important aspects of the workforce, such as demographics, pay, benefits, and the total number of artists in the United States. This information is crucial for establishing the impact of artist occupations on the economy, and for providing data comparable with those of other professions. The data enable us to describe the artist population in the US, track changes over time, and ultimately make better-informed arguments for support.
The enclosed report (Attachment 1) outlines the challenges in current classification, provides specific recommendations for changes to current codes, and shares the rationale supporting the recommendations. If you are short on time, you may find it helpful to skip to pages 26-27 of the report, where the recommended changes to current codes are outlined.
If you are interested in the context of these recommendations, see pages 2-3.
Pages 8-9 report the major issues identifying artists in federal statistical surveys.
Finally, we have also mapped the specific recommended changes using the BLS template (Attachment 2).
Instructions for providing recommendations:
If you would like to provide recommendations to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, you can share your comments here.
The BLS form is brief and Attachment 2 can help you with the required format for recommendations. Here is what is requested on the BLS form:
· The form starts with a section for your open comments and recommendations.
· This is followed by a section where you can upload documents with specific recommendations for changes to the classification codes.
· Recommendations must follow a specific format. We have detailed the recommendations from our report in the required format via Attachment 2. You can easily edit our spreadsheet to include any specific considerations you want to share. If you have no changes to suggest, you can simply upload the spreadsheet.
· Finally, the form will ask you to identify yourself with the option of being Anonymous.
· If it is helpful, you can see current submissions here.
Please feel free to share comments and to share this information with others!
A public review period for these data is a rare occurrence. Here, at last, is a tangible way to help improve the quality of information used for policy and resource decisions that affect artists in the United States.
Thank you for your commitment to the arts community,
Grantmakers in the Arts
