Department of Labor & Workforce Development

About the Office of Research and Information

The Office of Research and Information (ORI) is New Jersey’s premier source for economic, labor market, and demographic data and analysis. ORI’s services and insights help New Jerseyans—students, job seekers, business owners, and policymakers alike—to make better, more data-informed decisions.

Develop, analyze, and disseminate labor market and demographic data;
Prepare accountability reports for the State and Federal government agencies that fund Labor’s workforce and worker benefits programs;
Provide performance measurement, business intelligence, and evaluation services that promote the continuous improvement of Labor programs;
Serve as the data backbone for strategic enforcement and compliance activities undertaken by Labor’s worker protection programs;
Oversee the review and approval of New Jersey’s private career schools and maintain the Eligible Training Provider List; and
Develop, maintain, and operate user-centric digital tools to guide New Jerseyans’ career planning activities

Under the leadership of the Assistant Commissioner and Deputy Assistant Commissioner, ORI houses three divisions:

Economic and Demographic Research
Workforce Research and Analytics
Center for Occupational Employment Information

EDR has four major units:

BLS programs
Unemployment Insurance Reporting
State Data Center
Labor Market Information Bureau

This unit is responsible for carrying out the Federal-State Cooperative Programs with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, including:

Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW): The QCEW provides measures of employment and wages by industry from a census of all UI-covered employers. The source data are tax filings that come to ORI from employer accounts.
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS): The OEWS is a survey of thousands of employers conducted in two semiannual panels, in May and November. Data include total employment and distribution of wages. In 2018, NJDOL made participation by sampled employers mandatory.
Local Area Employment Statistics (LAUS) and Current Employment Statistics (CES): Updated monthly, the LAUS measures the labor force, number employed and the number unemployed, and refines and adjusts the state unemployment rate estimates generated by a national survey. CES is the monthly jobs report generated from a sample survey of businesses.
Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII): This is an annual survey of establishments that provides information on the incidence rate and number of work-related injuries and illnesses and how these statistics vary by incident, industry, geography, occupation, and other characteristics. (In NJ, fatal injuries data are collected by the NJDOH)

Through this program, ORI produces monthly, quarterly, and annual UI Claims reports as required by USDOL ETA and analyzes claims data as needed for internal and external stakeholders. This was a particularly active area during COVID-19 and called on analysts from the SDC and LMI Bureau to assist.

The State Data Center is New Jersey’s lead agency in a national network of coordinating and affiliate agencies. This network works in partnership with the Census Bureau through the Data Users Branch (DUB) and the Census Bureau's Regional Offices for data dissemination at the local level.

The Labor Market Information Bureau comprises a team of professionals who analyze labor market, demographic, and other economic data and develop products, including industry reports, regional reports, and special topic issues, and provide technical assistance to Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) and One-Stop Career Center management and staff on the nature of labor market demand as it relates to career services strategies. The bureau also assists WDBs with their required planning reports by providing a comprehensive analysis of labor market demand.

Workforce Research and Analytics comprises two units: Performance and Program Reporting/Evaluation and Data Validation.

This unit carries out several performance reporting responsibilities. Many of these tasks relate to WIOA performance, including ETA-required performance reports (quarterly and annually), monthly reports customized to local area needs that provide insights into their performance. The group also produces performance reports for related programs, including TAA, Veterans, Reentry, MSFW, and WFNJ-SNAP. Other reporting responsibilities are related to Unemployment Insurance. Finally, analysts in this unit also provide econometric modeling services that determine local area targets (also WIOA) and identify those UI Claimants who are the highest risk of exhausting their benefits, which informs the selection of participants in the RESEA program.

Staff in the Reporting/Evaluation unit also work closely with Finance & Accounting to provide several fiscal analyses related to the TDI/FLI and UI Trust Funds of value to Treasury and the Legislature during budget season.

As set forth in WIOA section 116, states must undertake extensive procedures to ensure that all data submitted to the Federal Government are valid and reliable. USDOL-ETA data validation requirements include all four titles of WIOA and related programs. The DVU team works closely with the Workforce Development team to provide technical and program support to local offices, and identify case management system/reporting issues and any needed software updates to be coordinated with the DIT team and the data system vendor. Data validation is also required for Income Security (UI) areas.

The Center for Occupational Employment Information (COEI) was established by statute to exist within the Office of Research and Information at NJDOL and work in tandem with the Department of Education and the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education to:

Provide career information and support for career guidance and academic counseling programs and education decision-making by individuals in areas related to careers;
Make information and planning resources available on the internet to the extent possible;
Review applications for the Eligible Training Provider List and maintain that list;
Develop and update the labor demand occupations list;
Generate a consumer report card that helps consumers understand the track record of training programs in helping people obtain jobs and increase their wages; and
Implement and enforce a process to revoke or suspend entities from the ETPL.

COEI currently operates two units: the Training Evaluation Unit (TEU) and the Worker Experience Unit (WX).