Data on education cover all types of schools irrespective of ownership ( state-owned, private and church schools).

Secondary technical schools also include performing arts schools. Secondary integrated schools have not been measured separately since 1998. Those integrated schools corresponding in nature to secondary technical schools are included in the number of secondary technical schools. Those corresponding in nature to secondary vocational schools are included in the number of secondary vocational schools. The number of pupils attending secondary technical schools and grammar schools includes the number of pupils enrolled in both initial and on-job studies. The data were taken over from publications of the Institute for Information on Education – a departmental workplace under the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic, dealing with education statistics.

CULTURE AND SPORTS

Data on culture and sports have been based on the MOS database (statistical database on towns and municipalities) since 1998. They refer to all cultural and sport facilities irrespective of their founder.

Data on public libraries include data on libraries of all types, i.e. district and local pople’s libraries along with other libraries employing professionals.

Amphitheatres are multi-purpose outdoor facilities intended to give theatrical and film performances, entertainment shows and other cultural and social events in the summer time.

HEALTH

Selected data on health (numbers of physicians and paramedical staff, and number of health establishments) are taken over from the Institute of Health Information and Statistics of the Czech Republic (UZIS). The data cover both government and non-government sector.

Data on incapacity for work due to disease or injury are processed by the CZSO The reporting duty is imposed on all businesses which fulfil duties concerning sickness insurance independently, and district social security administrations, which submit aggregates for those entities that do not settle sickness insurance claims on their own.

Average percentage of incapacity for work is calculated as the ratio of the number calendar days of incapacity for work due to disease or injury to the average number of the sickness insured, multiplied by the number of calendar days in a year.

SOCIAL SECURITY

The social security scheme includes pension insurance, sickness insurance, state social support benefits, and social care.

The pension insurance scheme takes care of citizens in the case of old age, invalidity or loss of breadwinner. Provided within this programme as of 1 January 1996 (Act No. 155/1995 Coll., on Social Security) are old-age, disability (full and partial), widows’, widowers’, and orphans’ pensions. According to the Act, wives’ pensions, pensions for long-term service, social pensions, pensions granted before 1 January 1957 are provided in as either invalidity or old-age pensions. The tables relating to pension insurance do not include data concerning the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice of the CR.

In 1995, Act No. 118/1995 Coll. was passed to amend some laws in connection with the adoption of the State Social Support Act. Separated out of the health insurance scheme were some benefits of non-insurance nature (child-birth grant, child benefit, parental benefit, death grant) to be transferred to state social care support benefits. Starting with 1 July 1997 and according to Act No. 75/1997 Coll., on Social Benefit, the so-called separate benefits such as heat contribution (the amount of money to compensate for higher prices of energy) and housing rental contribution are paid. They are constructed in the same way as the state social care support benefits are. An independent act had to be passed, because these contributions are of price compensation in nature and are supposed to be paid over a temporary period of next three years only.

The sickness insurance system of benefits includes four benefits, namely sickness benefit, family member care benefit, maternity benefit, and pregnancy and maternity compensation benefit. These benefits are fully provided to employed persons, members of producer cooperatives, and cooperative farmers. Self-employed persons do not receive the family member care benefit or the maternity and pregnancy compensation benefit. Job applicants receive neither the family member care benefit, nor the maternity and pregnancy compensation benefit, nor the sickness benefit.

The social care programme is used by the government to help citizens who find themselves in unfavourable life conditions and cannot overcome their difficulties without help of others. Social care benefits and services comprise care for the family and child, citizens with reduced capacity to work, senior and severely handicapped citizens, citizens requiring special help, and socially not adapted citizens. They include, e.g., rendering community care services, catering for pensioners and other non-financial assistance, contributions to the blind, contributions to costs of powered wheelchairs for the disabled, contributions to citizens suffering from tuberculosis or diabetes, contributions granted in extraordinary situations, etc.

Costs of care for citizens with reduced capacity to work also include costs of training such people for appropriate occupations, contributions paid before such people are placed in jobs, and financial help provided during their preparation for occupation.

The Czech Statistical Service uses outputs from the information systems run by the Czech Social Security Administration (information on sickness insurance benefits, pensions actually paid, pension insurance benefits, average monthly level of newly granted pensions – all except for data for the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice of the CR) and by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the CR (information on expenditure on social care services, social care establishments and beds in these establishments, retirement homes, community care services, and social security benefits).