Submit the Employment Projections for Occupation-Industry for Each Occupation Cited

Last month, we discussed why the Equal Distribution Method of Estimating Job Numbers Conflicts with the DOT.  This reverts back to the basic mantra of cross-examination of vocational experts -- cough up the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) groups and the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes.  After that data, we just need the number of DOT codes that share the same SOC-NAICS intersection. 

Destroying the vocational expert's testimony on job numbers starts with that basic premise: SOC, NAICS, and number of co-existing DOT codes.  Once the representative has that data, one easy step remains to complete this circle:  submit the employment projections sorted by occupation for that occupational group. When we look at an Occu Collect report, the evidence is there:

Quick Facts: Helpers--production workers
Typical Entry-Level Education	High school diploma or equivalent
Work experience in a related occupation	None
On the job training	Short-term on-the-job training
Number of jobs, 2016	426,000
Employment Projections	XLSX

Industry - Occupation Matrix Data, By Occupation

Education And Training By Occupation

The XLSX link in the box is the OOH that appears in every occupation covered in detail in the OOH on the "job outlook" tab.  For the occupations not addressed in detail, the OOH links to the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) page and to the O*NET OnLine page which contain different occupational numbers.  The O*NET OnLine reports the 2016 employment projects job number, as does the OOH.  The OES currently reports the 2017 job number estimate.  Because the OOH reports the employment projections job numbers for occupations not covered in detail and the employment projections are the foundation for the OOH, use the employment projections.  The Industry-Occupation Matrix Data, By Occupation has a complete list of all SOC codes with the employment projections of each occupation and the number of estimated jobs within the statistically relevant industries.  We typically do not need to see them all, just the employment projections for the occupation at issue in the particular case.  We should use the XLSX link.  

Those simple steps preserve the issue of job numbers.  The OOH report preserves the conflict with the vocational testimony by serendipity -- typical entry-level education is high school diploma or equivalent.  (An improved OOH report from Occu Collect will provide the educational levels of incumbents after Labor Day.)  If the ALJ denies the claim, the claimant has the full array of arrows in the quiver to use at the Appeals Council and in the courts.  The take-away is simple, submit the employment projections for the occupation-industry for each occupation cited by the vocational expert.