Restricted Data

BLS restricted data characteristics

• All BLS restricted data available to researchers are based on released data. Pre-release or embargoed data are not available for researcher access.
• The types of identifiers available will depend on the BLS restricted dataset(s) required for the project. Please contact RDA_Admin@bls.gov if you have questions prior to submitting your application.
• Certain datasets have particular access, availability, and/or quality limitations. Please see any notes listed below the dataset title on the restricted data category pages linked below.

BLS restricted data categories

• Employment and Unemployment
• Compensation and Working Conditions
• Prices and Living Conditions

Note: If you only require data from the public use files, you do not need to apply for access.

Employment and Unemployment

• Current Employment Statistics (CES): National and State and Area

  The number of projects requiring CES data access is currently limited to two (whether National or State and Area data). Data availability for both National and State and Area goes back to 2003.

• Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS)
• Mass Layoff Statistics (MLS)
• National Longitudinal Surveys (NLSY) Original Cohorts: Mature and Young Women, and Older and Young Men files with Geographic Variables
  • Access is only available in the FSRDCs (not onsite at BLS).
• National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) Zip Code and Census Tract Files
• National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) Zip Code and Census Tract Files
• National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth Geocode Data (NLSY Geocode)
  • Different application procedures apply for offsite access to the NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult, and NLSY97 Geocode Data.
• NLSY97 School Surveys
• Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) Program, and the associated Longitudinal Database of Establishments (LDE) covered by State Unemployment Insurance (UI) Programs. *Please note: A queue for new projects requiring QCEW restricted data access is in effect. See "Queues/Waiting Lists" below.
  • Access to restricted QCEW data is considered only for research projects that do not involve tabular output.
  • QCEW researchers must elect a course of action at the beginning of their project in accordance with the QCEW State Data Access Policy for Visiting Researchers (PDF).
  • Please be aware that the QCEW contains establishment, not firm, data from employers.  Researchers that need data on firms and/or want to link restricted BLS data with external datasets that contain firm information should consult the Monthly Labor Review article on Linking firms with establishments in BLS microdata, which explains the relationships among Employer Identification Numbers (EINs), UI account numbers, and establishments in the QCEW and discusses the difficulties involved in matching establishments to parent firms.
• Occupational Employment Statistics Survey (OES)
• Surveys of Employer Provided Training (SEPT) -1993 and 1995

Compensation and Working Conditions

• Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI)
• Offsite CFOI Micro Fatality Research File
  • Different application procedures apply for offsite access to the CFOI Research File.
• National Compensation Survey (NCS) and its predecessors, including:
  • Employment Cost Index (ECI)
  • Employer Costs for Employee Compensation (ECED)
  • Occupational Compensation Survey (OCS)
  • Industry Wage Surveys
  • Area Wage Surveys
  • Employee Benefits Surveys (EBS)
• Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII)

Prices and Living Conditions

• Consumer Price Index (CPI) **Please note: A waiting list for new projects requiring CPI restricted data access is in effect. See "Queues/Waiting Lists" below.
  • Availability: CPI restricted data are available back to 1989.
• International Price Program (IPP)
• Producer Price Indexes (PPI) **Please note: A waiting list for new projects requiring PPI restricted data access is in effect. See "Queues/Waiting Lists" below.
• Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE)
  • Accepted CE researchers must obtain Special Sworn Status (SSS) through the Census Bureau even though access is only available onsite at the BLS. Researchers will receive instructions for the process if their project is approved. BLS must receive confirmation from the U.S. Census Bureau that a researcher’s SSS has been approved before the researcher is permitted to access CE restricted data. The U.S. Census Bureau clearance takes approximately four weeks from when it is initiated.

Special Data Considerations

Waiting Lists/Queues

BLS accepts only as many research projects for onsite access as resources (space, facilities, staff time, etc.) can accommodate. Depending on the demand for restricted data access and/or resource availability, BLS may institute a queue (activation of new projects occurs as current projects are completed) or a waiting list (activation of new projects on hold until further notice) for approved access to certain datasets.

**As of October 2017, a waiting list has been instituted for approved projects requiring access to CPI and PPI restricted data until further notice. If you have submitted a proposal currently pending review or plan to submit a proposal that requires CPI and/or PPI data access, your proposal will be reviewed and evaluated by the MARB. If approved, your project will be placed on a waiting list pending available BLS resources to accommodate the work. Should resources become available, projects on the waiting lists will be activated in the order in which they were approved.

*A queue is in effect for projects requiring restricted Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) data access with a current estimated wait time of two years. As current projects are completed, approved projects in the QCEW queue will be activated in the order in which they were approved.

SIC to NAICs Conversion

In 2002, the BLS transitioned from using the Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC) to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Introduced in 1997, NAICS was the product of a collaborative effort between the United States, Canada, and Mexico. A classification system shared across the three countries allows direct comparison of economic data across borders in North America. NAICS codes are not related to SIC codes; rather NAICS is a completely redesigned way of coding industries. NAICS uses a six-digit hierarchical coding system to classify all economic activity into twenty industry sectors. This six-digit hierarchical structure allows greater coding flexibility than the four-digit structure of the SIC. BLS restricted historical data files for time periods before and including 2002 may be incomplete or unavailable. If you would like more information about available historical data for a particular dataset, please see the Contact BLS page. For more information about the NAICS conversion, NAICS codes, and the impact on BLS data, see https://www.bls.gov/bls/naics.htm

Last Modified Date: October 27, 2017

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