Household Production and Consumption in Finland 2001

allowances are taken into account in the form of subsidies on production,
which reduces the net value added of care.
The same concept of care may also be applied to caring for a pet. Opinions
are bound to differ on whether or not the care of pets amounts to production
that should be included in the Household Satellite Account. One argument in
favour of its inclusion is that the care of pets can be delegated to another
person, i.e. it meets the criterion of productive activity and it is unpaid. Once
they have been brought into household, pets cannot be left without care. The
output also has a market equivalent in the services offered by kennels and pet
boarding services, which will look after animals while their owners are away on
holiday. There are also dog-walking services.
The exclusion of pet care, on the other hand, might be justified by
reference to the fact that the care of animals is not as necessary to the need
satisfaction of household members as the housing, feeding, clothing and care of
family members. Having animals may be regarded as a hobby that can be
discontinued if for instance the household has difficulties keeping the pet.
However the decision was made to include the care of pets in the Satellite
Account as a separate principal function. It is a productive activity that can be
outsourced. Furthermore, the amount of time involved in pet care is not
insignificant, and it also seems that market production surrounding pet care is
on the increase (e.g. animal food and supplies, pet boarding facilities, animal
hospitals). The care of animals included in the Satellite Account is the unpaid
care of an own dog, cat or other animals. The care of farm animals is not
included in the Satellite Account because that meets the criterion of market
production. Walking dogs is often associated with the owner’s physical
exercise. For this reason dog care is limited to “compulsory” 10-minute walks
at a time. Time spent beyond that is defined in the Time Use Survey as a
leisure activity, which is not included in the Satellite Account.
Volunteer work
Volunteering is unpaid labour for the benefit of another household or
organisation. It does therefore not count as production for own use, which
otherwise is the leading criterion in the Satellite Account. However since it is
unpaid, volunteer work is not recorded and remains invisible in so far as it is
not included in the core national accounts. Volunteering that is aimed at the
production of goods is included in the core national accounts. Building of a
church by volunteers provides an example of this.
A distinction can be made between informal help or neighbourly help,
which in practice may consist of childcare, preparing meals, running errands
etc. on behalf of a friend or relative. On the other hand, volunteer work may
consist of community help, such as handing out food aid or voluntary work at a
youth club. All these are included under the function of volunteer work.
Volunteer work, by definition, cannot be produced as a market commodity.
When someone is hired to do voluntary work, it automatically becomes regular
wage labour.
National Consumer Research Centre Statistics Finland 29