SR · 02
OECD guidance on non-standard work: aligning definitions across national series
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published measurement notes on non-standard forms of employment, including temporary, part-time and own-account arrangements that intersect with digital platforms. The guidance is normative for statistical practice; it is not a ranking of national labour markets.
Why definitions matter
When countries code platform-mediated tasks differently—as self-employment, casual wage work or “other”—cross-country tables can appear to show divergence that is partly classification noise.
Household surveys versus administrative sources
OECD materials repeatedly flag gaps between survey self-reports and tax or social-security files. Neither source is treated as universally superior; each carries selectivity and lag.
Reading the guidance
Slide Rule treats OECD papers as method references. They do not prescribe how any household should organize secondary earnings, and they do not certify outcomes for individual readers.