The Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) is a household-based sample survey conducted by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). The survey collects data on the labour market activities of individuals aged 15 years and above who live in South Africa. The objective of the QLFS is to collect quarterly information about persons in the labour market, i.e., those who are employed; those who are unemployed and those who are not economically active. The Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) frame has been developed as a general-purpose household survey frame that can be used by all other household surveys, irrespective of the sample size requirement of the survey. The sample size for the QLFS is roughly 30,000 dwellings per quarter. The sample is based on information collected during the 2001 Population Census conducted by Stats SA. The sample is designed to be representative at provincial level and within provinces at metro/non-metro level. Within the metros, the sample is further distributed by geography type. The four geography types are: urban formal, urban informal, farms, and tribal. This implies, for example, that within a metropolitan area the sample is representative of the different geography types that may exist within that metro.
