THE MEASUREMENT OF LABOR-FORCE DYNAMICS WITH LONGITUDINAL DATA - THE LABOR-MARKET ACTIVITY SURVEY FILTER

This article explores the measurement of labor force dynamics using lo ngitudinal data, focusing in particular on the Canadian Labour Market Activity Survey (LMAS), which represents a potential advance in longit udinal data collection because it measures aspects of dynamics not ava ilable in existing panel data such as the Panel Study of Income Dynami cs and the National Longitudinal Survey. We examine the implications o f the LMAS questionnaire structure-the LMAS filter-for the study of la bor market dynamics and undertake simulations to provide a quantitativ e assessment of the importance of this filter for labor force spells a nd transitions between labor force states.