The Occupational Information Network Taxonomy
| Name | The Occupational Information Network Taxonomy |
| Also Known As | O*NET |
| Status | Endorsed |
The evaluation document is available in PDF format and in ODT format.
The O*NET (The Occupational Information Network) programme is the US’s primary source of occupational information. The skill taxonomy within it categorises skill areas at the top most level as Basic Skills & Cross Functional Skills and further into 7 mid-level and finally comprehensively defines 46 lower level skill areas (e.g. Reading, decision making etc.).
The system measures job requirements covering around 1,000 occupations. O*Net aligns to the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system, a US federal statistical standard used to classify workers into occupational categories for the purpose of collecting, calculating, or disseminating data.
The taxonomy is used by organisations outside of the US, for example Organisation for Economic Co-Cooperation Development (OECD). O*net is provided open source and is available to download free of charge. Methodology information is available here. O*net has a strong and continuous revision and maintenance process in place. https://www.onetcenter.org/dl_files/TaxonomyDev2019.pdf
There is also a machine readable file.
Documentation:
Metadata:
Crosswalks and limitations:
The taxonomy has an occupational classification that aligns to ISCO. There is a cross walk to UK SOC 2010 and one in development for UK SOC 2020. https://www.onetcenter.org/crosswalks.html
O*Net was not developed for the UK market. UK and US job roles may differ, reflecting technology usage, commercial patterns, industrial profile, legislation, regulation and the economy.
The O*NET-SOC occupational hierarchy does not map directly to UK SOC 2010, and some granularity is lost, with some occupations lacking a match or relying heavily on averaging. O*NET does not provide any link between skills and UK qualifications.
Contact:
US point of contact: National Center for O*NET Development onet@onetcenter.org
UK point of contact: Classifications Unit, Office for National Statistics occupation.information@ons.gov.uk