Digital score for occupations

Digitalization is increasingly reshaping labor markets and the role of skills within occupations. To explore the relationship between digital skills and occupations, we use two data frameworks: ESCO (European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations) and CompetentNL. ESCO serves as a European multilingual classification system for skills, competences, qualifications, and occupations, while CompetentNL is a national standard used to describe skills in the context of vacancies, education, and training.

For both frameworks, we established a three-level classification of digital skills, based on the complexity of the required competencies. Using this classification, we propose a digital score indicator for occupations, which quantifies the level of digital literacy required in various professional roles. Subsequently, we focus on quantifying the labor force associated with digitally skilled occupations. This approach allows for the creation of aggregated tables that represent the distribution of the labor force across industry sectors, along with derived digital scores for each sector.

Mushkudiani, N., Vuik, J., Bertrand T. & Okkerse-Ruitenberg, R. (2026). Digital score for occupations. Discussion paper, Statistics Netherlands, The Hague.