
Skill level is measured operationally by considering one or more of: Skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. These are s kill level and s kill specialization.

For the purposes of ISCO-08, two dimensions of skill are used to arrange occupations into groups. Skill is defined as the ability to carry out the tasks and duties of a given job. A person may be associated with an occupation through the main job currently held, a second job, a future job or a job previously held. The concept of occupation is defined as a “set of jobs whose main tasks and duties are characterized by a high degree of similarity”. Occupation refers to the kind of work performed in a job.


In this handy reference list, we provide abbreviations for several hundred occupations. Some abbreviations of occupations are self evident. Some census records also abbreviate occupations due to the lack of space on census forms. This allowed more names to be written on each page. For example, old city directories would often abbreviate occupations of residents. Occupations were often written in abbreviated form in historic documents.
