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Purpose – The purpose of this editorial is to provide an overview of the wider debates concerning the evolution of work-life balance practice and policy since the onset of the "Great Recession" of 2008 and to draw out some comparisons of the issues raised by the papers in the special issue by focusing particularly on the example of the UK. Design/methodology/approach – The editorial analyses how the direction and pace of changes in work-life balance practice and policy varies between different national contexts and welfare regimes and also asks whether, within the same national context, the changes taking place are always consistent. Findings – The special issue draws together an international overview of work-life balance measures which focuses particularly on measures for fathers, an EU-wide analysis of the use of flexible employment and its relationship with work-family conflict and a number of specific country case studies from Southern Europe where recession has been particularly severe (Spain and Italy) and the Southern hemisphere (Australia) where the recession has been less deep. It finds that economic crisis and austerity have resulted in a variety of labour market changes and policy responses in different national settings, some but not all of which map onto existing welfare regime typologies. The articles raise a wider set of questions about what type of policy best promotes employees' work-life balance. The editorial argues in favour of legislative support for work-life balance to help address structural inequalities. Originality/value – This editorial and special issue is one of the first to review the small but growing literature on the effect of recession on individuals' experience of work-life balance, organisations' approach to work-life balance and reconciliation policy since 2008. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – For many decades, European national governments sought to stamp out undeclared work using a repressive approach. In the changing economic context of declining employment participation rates, however, the European Commission has called for a new approach to transform undeclared work into declared work. This necessitates public policy innovations. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the degree to which this European Commission call for policy innovation has been adopted by European national governments. Design/methodology/approach – To evaluate this, the results are reported of an e-survey conducted in 2010 of 104 senior stakeholders from government departments, trade unions and employer organisations in 31 European countries, and 24 follow-up in-depth interviews. Findings – The finding is that although European nations have responded to the changing economic context and the resultant call by the European Commission for a new approach by adopting an array of innovative new policy measures to facilitate the declaration of undeclared work, stamping out such endeavour through repression measures remains the principal approach in most nations. Research limitations/implications – Until now, few studies have evaluated critically the different policy approaches adopted by European national governments to tackle undeclared work. This paper fills that gap. Practical implications – This paper reveals that if undeclared jobs are to be transformed into declared jobs and economic inclusion promoted, national governments will need to accord more priority to innovative new policy measures to legitimise declared work than is currently the case. Originality/value – This is the first critical evaluation of whether the European Commission call for innovative new policy measures when tackling undeclared work has been implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse work-family reconciliation policy during the Sarkozy presidency in France, assessing the extent to which Sarkozy's injunction on the French to "work more to earn more" has provided a new frame for policy in this area. Design/methodology/approach – The paper analyses the policy debates and initiatives concerning work-family reconciliation in France since 2007 and seeks to identify the frames of reference concerning the problems of and solutions to combining paid work and parenthood which have structured this policy process. Findings – The change in employment policy away from work-sharing and towards activation of previously economically-inactive groups has influenced work-family reconciliation policy in that both incentive measures (creation of more collective and subsidised childcare places) and coercive measures (reduction of the length of parental leave benefits) have been put in place or debated in order to increase the number of mothers of young children in the labour market. Feminist discourse has been used to justify proposals for the reduction in length of paid parental leaves representing an example of "triangulation" in which right-wing governments invoke left-wing ideology to defend policy. Research limitations/implications – The present analysis emphasises the importance of incorporating the influence of the frames of reference which inform employment and poverty-reduction policy into explaining approaches to work-family reconciliation policy in France. Originality/value – This article represents the first examination of work-family reconciliation policy in France under President Sarkozy and emphasises the importance of incorporating employment-related frames of reference in explaining work-family reconciliation policy in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the reasons women living in dual-earner households give for not outsourcing domestic chores so as to understand better the barriers to the outsourcing of domestic labour. Design/methodology/approach - The analysis is based on a web questionnaire survey amongst 550 staff of a large service-sector employer in the UK. Using the Likert scale, reasons why households did or did not outsource domestic chores were investigated. Findings - The two main reasons for not outsourcing which emerged from the research were first, not being able to afford it and second, the satisfaction individuals derived from looking after their own homes. Research limitations/implications - The first finding concerning affordability reinforces previous research that emphasises income as a determining factor in domestic outsourcing. The second finding that some women do not outsource because they put a positive value on looking after their own homes raises the question of whether the under-development of domestic outsourcing reflects a culture of resistance to the commodification of private life or evidence of the persistence of traditional ideas concerning domesticity and gender identity. Originality/value - Many studies of domestic outsourcing have focused on the provider/supplier. Fewer concentrate on the consumer and where this has been done, it has been those who outsource that have been the focus of research. This article contributes to the debate by concentrating on those who do not outsource regular domestic tasks as a way of understanding the barriers to domestic outsourcing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - In the majority (third) world, informal employment has been long viewed as an asset to be harnessed rather than a hindrance to development. The purpose of this paper is to show how a similar perspective is starting to be embraced in advanced economies and investigates the implications for public policy of this re-reading. Design/methodology/approach - Documents the shifts in how informal employment in western economies is conceptualised in both the academic literature and public policy. Findings - This paper reveals that the representation of informal employment as an exploitative, low-paid sweatshop realm is being replaced with a depiction of such work as a hidden enterprise culture that needs to be harnessed. Evaluating how this might be achieved, the need for a shift in public policy away from a deterrence approach and towards an approach that combines deterrents with enabling initiatives to pull this hidden enterprise culture into the formal economy is identified. Specific enabling measures to achieve this in the context of advanced economies are then discussed. Practical implications - This paper displays how western governments can harness the hidden enterprise culture by setting out specific initiatives to enable its transfer into the formal economy. Originality/value - This paper provides one of the first attempts to re-read informal employment as a hidden enterprise culture and to evaluate its implications for public policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - To evaluate critically the view of undeclared work as market-like activity conducted for monetary gain, and participation as a rational economic decision, and the resultant public policy response that seeks to deter engagement in such work by ensuring that the expected cost of being caught and punished is greater than the economic benefit of participating. Design/methodology/approach - Review of empirical research on the work relations and motives of those engaged in undeclared work. Findings - This paper reveals that although some undeclared work is market-like and conducted for unadulterated economic reasons, a large proportion is carried out under relations and for motives more akin to unpaid mutual aid, especially in deprived populations. Practical implications - Evaluating the implications of this finding for a deterrence approach, the argument is that rather than simply seek to eliminate such paid mutual aid through deterrence, a more refined approach is required that combines deterrence with initiatives to facilitate the legitimisation of such work. How this might be achieved is then outlined. Originality/value - This paper provides the rationale for moving towards a more "joined-up" public policy approach towards tackling undeclared work and developing social capital rather than treating them as separate policy realms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate critically whether under a market system, monetary exchange is always and everywhere based on profit-seeking behaviour, this article examines cash-in-hand work, a form of activity convention- ally conceptualised as low paid employment heavily imbued with profit motivations on the part of both the consumer and supplier. Re- porting data gathered through structured face-to-face interviews with 511 households in affluent and deprived neighbourhoods in two English cities, this article reveals that although most cash-in-hand work conducted by people living in affluent suburbs is conducted under social relations akin to employment for profit-motivated purposes, the vast majority of cash-in-hand work in deprived neighbourhoods is undertaken by and for kin, neighbours and friends for a range of cooperative reasons under social relations more akin to unpaid community exchange. Given this heterogeneity of cash-in-hand work, this article questions whether seeking its eradication through more stringent regulations is the appropriate policy response, especially in deprived neighbourhoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that by shackling the future of work to a vision of full employment, alternative futures are closed off. At present, employment creation is seen as the sole route out of poverty. Here, however, we reveal that a complementary additional pathway is to help people to help themselves and each other. To show this, evidence from a survey of 400 households in deprived neighbourhoods of Southampton and Sheffield is reported. This reveals that besides creating job opportunities, measures that directly empower people to improve their circumstances could be a useful complementary initiative to combat social exclusion and open up new futures for work that are currently closed off. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]