California Cancer Reporting System Standards Volume I: Abstracting and Coding Procedures for Hospitals
Enter any available information about the kind of work performed (e.g., television repairman, chemistry teacher, bookkeeper, construction worker), up to 100 characters associated with the longest held occupation.
Avoid the use of abbreviations where possible.
If an occupation is recorded in the chart without mention of its being the longest held, indicate this with an asterisk next to the entry (e.g., insurance salesman*).
If the patient is not employed, try to determine the longest held occupation.
Do not enter a term such as "homemaker," "student," "retired," "unemployed," or "disabled" unless no other information can be obtained.
If no information is available, enter "NR" (not recorded). Do not leave this field blank.
Please refer to http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2011-173/