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Informal employment remains ubiquitous in developing-country labour markets. While informality has been associated with poor outcomes—such as low wages and precarious working conditions—it has been argued that some informal jobs could be beneficial for workers due to non-pecuniary characteristics—such as autonomy and flexibility. We revisit this long-running theoretical debate by analysing job satisfaction, a broad measure of worker welfare. Using two waves of the Indonesian Family Life Survey, we estimate fixed effects regressions to show that informal workers are less likely to be satisfied with their jobs than formal workers. This finding is robust to different estimation strategies, including a matched sample of sector movers and stayers. However, the likelihood of job satisfaction varies considerably among informal workers, with informal self-employed workers being more likely to be satisfied with their jobs than informal salaried workers. Moreover, this satisfaction differential only applies to informal salaried workers in informal enterprises, suggesting a need to better understand the employment conditions facing this group of workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Tourism Tribune / Lvyou Xuekan is the property of Tourism Institute of Beijing Union University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In Mexico, approximately 55% of the working population is employed informally, contributing 24.4% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2022. This study analyzed the impact of wages, taxes, government spending, and unemployment on the informal economy of Mexico from 1980 to 2022, as well as its relationship with the tertiary sector's contribution to the GDP. The methodology of the study was structural equation modeling. The findings of this study revealed that an increase in taxes, the unemployment rate, and the minimum wage in Mexico tends to be accompanied by a rise in informal employment. Finally, a unitary change in the latent variable informality affected the growth of the tertiary sector's contribution to the GDP by 0.37 units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to analyze the relationship between working poverty and informality, based on the Argentine case of the last two decades. We examine the net effect of labor informality on monetary poverty and under which labor, socio-demographic, and family conditions informality is more strongly associated with poverty. We use micro data from the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses' (indec) Permanent Household Survey and apply microsimulations and multivariate analysis. The results show that informality is a structural component of the urban labor market and that the net effect of informality is relevant and sustained over time. However, they also reveal that the relationship between informality and poverty is not straightforward: most informal insertions are not directly linked to economic deprivation. The risk of poverty among the informally employed is explained not only by the characteristics of their occupations, but also by sociodemographic characteristics, dependency rates in their households, and the low protective capacity of social benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adverse effects of COVID-19 on labour market outcomes are amplified by and partly attributable to the imposition of extreme mobility restrictions. While gendered disparities in job losses and reduction in working hours are demonstrated in the literature, is an informalization of employment observed, and is this phenomenon likewise gendered? This article analyses the Philippines, a country that imposed one of the world's longest and strictest lockdowns, and specifically how its imposition affected informal employment. A conceptual and empirical distinction between compositional and survivalist informalization is proffered – the former referring to informality induced by changes in the size and composition of overall employment, and the latter referring to informality induced by the need to work owing to absent sufficient welfare support and precautionary household savings. Examining the regional variation in lockdowns as a quasi-experiment, results demonstrate that extreme lockdowns increased the probability of informal employment among employed women but not among employed men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Objective The number of workers engaged in informal employment in China has reached 200 million individuals, constituting a substantial contribution to the pursuit of high-quality development and the attainment of stable employment objectives. Nevertheless, the psychological well-being of informal workers cannot be overlooked. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impact of informal employment on individuals’ psychological well-being. Methods Drawing on data from the 2020 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) survey, this work employs ordinary least squares (OLS) models and instrumental variable analysis to empirically examine the impact of informal employment on the psychological well-being. Furthermore, different tests were utilised to analyse the mediating pathway through which informal employment affects the psychological well-being. Results Informal employment exhibits a significant negative impact on the psychological well-being, particularly among samples characterised by low educational levels, limited financial resources, and non-agricultural household registration. The exploration of the underlying mechanisms indicates that informal employment negatively affects the psychological well-being of workers through pathways that include reduced access to health entitlements, increased working hours, and decreased job satisfaction, particularly with the work environment. Conclusion A recommendation is proposed; namely, to further establish a social security system that caters to the needs of the informal employment population and supports and regulates the development of flexible employment forms, with the aim of protecting and enhancing the psychological well-being of the informal employment population.

Introduction. The problem of reducing the level of informal employment has worsened in the last 3 years against the background of geopolitical crises. A number of experts call the growth of its volumes one of the most important risks for the Russian labor market. Goal. The paper examines the scale and features of informal employment in the Russian labor market and identifies the factors determining the choice of the informal employment sector. Materials and methods. The information base of the study was compiled by RLMS HSE data for the period 2011-2022. In order to exclude a possible bias in the results due to differences in the sectoral structure of employment in the formal and informal sectors, the sample was limited. The authors evaluated a panel logit model to determine the factors influencing the choice between the formal and informal sec-tors. Wage determinants in the informal sector are identified through the analysis of fixed and random effects panel data. Results and discussion. Based on the simulation results, it was found that the choice of the informal sector as the main place of work is strongly influenced by marital status, the importance of social protection measures, and career expectations. At the same time, the factors influencing the level of remuneration in the in-formal sector include the age of the employee, the amount of working time (in hours), and the availability of managerial experience. Conclusion. The problem of reducing the share of informal employment has a great importance both at the micro level and at the level of the whole country. It leads to low collection of taxes to budgets and insurance contributions to state extra-budgetary funds, and to an increase in the number of cases of violation of workers’ labor rights, especially in terms of pay and labor protection.

Abstract Background Rates of exclusive breastfeeding fall below recommended levels, particularly among women in paid employment. In Mexico, more than half of women are in informal employment, meaning they lack many of the protections that may support breastfeeding. Methods In-depth interviews with 15 key informants representing government agencies (n = 6 organizations), NGOs (n = 4), international organizations (n = 2), and academia (n = 2) in Mexico. Interviews were conducted between March and June 2023. To understand and describe barriers to breastfeeding among informally employed women in Mexico according to key informants and the current and potential policies to address these barriers, we conducted a qualitative thematic analysis. Results Current policies to promote, protect, and support breastfeeding predominantly apply to all employed women, but respondents expressed concern that they did not provide adequate protection for women in informal employment. Additional themes concerned the need for relevant programs to be institutionalized and coordinated, discussions of breastfeeding as a right, and the legal equivalence (whether true in practice or not) of formal and informal workers. Conclusions Women employed in Mexico’s informal sector face a dearth of maternity protections. According to key informants, few policies exist to promote, protect, and support breastfeeding among employed women, in general, but the economic vulnerability and challenging working conditions of women in informal employment exacerbates their situation. The lack of access to formal labor protections, such as paid maternity leave, creates a significant barrier to breastfeeding for women in the informal sector. Recommendations include short-term policies to fill gaps in social protection for informally employed women, as well as longer-term solutions such as the development of universal social protection programs and supporting formalization.

Objective: The number of workers engaged in informal employment in China has reached 200 million individuals, constituting a substantial contribution to the pursuit of high-quality development and the attainment of stable employment objectives. Nevertheless, the psychological well-being of informal workers cannot be overlooked. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impact of informal employment on individuals' psychological well-being. Methods: Drawing on data from the 2020 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) survey, this work employs ordinary least squares (OLS) models and instrumental variable analysis to empirically examine the impact of informal employment on the psychological well-being. Furthermore, different tests were utilised to analyse the mediating pathway through which informal employment affects the psychological well-being. Results: Informal employment exhibits a significant negative impact on the psychological well-being, particularly among samples characterised by low educational levels, limited financial resources, and non-agricultural household registration. The exploration of the underlying mechanisms indicates that informal employment negatively affects the psychological well-being of workers through pathways that include reduced access to health entitlements, increased working hours, and decreased job satisfaction, particularly with the work environment. Conclusion: A recommendation is proposed; namely, to further establish a social security system that caters to the needs of the informal employment population and supports and regulates the development of flexible employment forms, with the aim of protecting and enhancing the psychological well-being of the informal employment population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article argues that to understand housing as domestic only is a misconception. People intensify the use of their homes in ways that create substantial economic opportunities, urban services, and a range of social protections for themselves and their communities. The research presented here introduces the concept of 'space-use intensity', influenced by time-use surveys, Jane Jacobs's ideas on mixed-use, and the continuum approach to the informal economy, as conceptualized by Elinor Ostrom. Further, it describes the 'house interview' methodology devised to document spaceuse intensity and presents findings from houses in informal settlements in Bogota, Kampala, Dar es Salaam, and Dakar. The data reveal that houses are less than a third residential (29 per cent), almost half of the uses are economic (47 per cent), and they provide a fair share of urban or community services (24 per cent). This visual methodology demonstrates that local governments are overlooking 83.8 per cent of the activities taking place within homes. In sum, the evidence discussed here shows that homes contribute significantly to the urban economy and public services, making space-use intensity analysis instrumental in the design of effective housing, urban, and social protection policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Derecho de la Seguridad Social, Laborum is the property of Ediciones Laborum S.L. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Informality is widespread globally, with many workers and enterprises lacking formal arrangements. Effective statistics on the informal economy are essential for policy development, improving working conditions, and promoting decent work. Over the past 30 years, the establishment of statistical standards on informality has helped countries better measure and understand the informal sector and informal employment.Recent revisions to these standards, driven by evolving statistical labour standards and growing national experience, have led to a new resolution on informal economy statistics. Adopted at the 21st ICLS in 2023, this resolution offers a comprehensive framework for defining and measuring informality. It introduces concepts such as informal productive activities, the informal economy, the informal market economy, and informal work, setting the structure and boundaries for informality statistics.By integrating the 19th ICLS resolution on work, employment, and labour underutilization and the 20th ICLS resolution on work relationships, including ICSE-18, the new standards align with previous resolutions, promoting coherence in labour statistics. The resolution includes improved definitions of the formal and informal sectors, household own-use production and community sector, and formal and informal employment, enhancing data quality and harmonization across countries. Overall, the 21st ICLS resolution significantly enhance countries’ capacity to produce harmonized, policy-relevant statistics on the informal economy, aiding efforts to formalize it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employment conditions are important social and commercial determinants of health. Informal employment—also known as 'cash-in-hand' and 'undeclared' work—is a discrete employment condition that has salience around the world. Fuelled by neoliberal ideology, informal employment has become increasingly common in high-income countries. Public health research concerning the health of informal workers comes largely from low- and middle-income countries, where the phenomenon is more visible. There has been little research on the health effects of informal employment in high-income countries including Australia. Twenty-nine workers aged 18 years and older, who were undertaking informal work activities, were recruited using social media and an online marketplace in Tarndanya (Adelaide-Kaurna Country), Australia. Qualitative narrative data, demographic profiles, and physical and mental health scores were collected. Most informal workers reported unfair and indecent employment conditions including job insecurity, low income, coercion, and lack of respect and dignity at work, and were often exposed to unsafe and unhealthy work environments. Workplace injuries and exposure to occupational hazards were common; and Physical and Mental Component Scores were poorer among informal workers when compared to the population of South Australia as a whole. With informal employment in Australia described as part of a 'significant, pervasive, damaging and growing' problem, there is a need for a health promotion lens over industrial relations policies in the interest of creating equitable access to fair and decent work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper looks at the transition of workers in the MENA region between formal and informal jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, and investigates whether trade policy could be adopted as a measure to enhance the transition of workers from the informal to the formal sector. We use the combined COVID-19 MENA Monitor Household Survey constructed by the Economic Research Forum for 5 MENA countries and 11 sectors. This topic is timely and critical for the MENA region where informal employment is widespread, applied tariffs are still high, and female labor participation is low. Our results show that: first, fewer trade restrictions are associated with an increased probability for the worker to become formal and this effect is more pronounced post-pandemic. Second, fewer trade restrictions are linked to an increase in the probability of becoming formal for blue collars only, with an insignificant effect on white collars. Third, fewer trade restrictions are associated with an increase in the probability of men to become formal, with an insignificant effect on women. Finally, the effect of trade policy on job formality depends on the sectoral occupation of the individual with this effect being more pronounced in agriculture and manufacturing relatively to services sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rates of exclusive breastfeeding fall below recommended levels, particularly among women in paid employment. In Mexico, more than half of women are in informal employment, meaning they lack many of the protections that may support breastfeeding. Methods: In-depth interviews with 15 key informants representing government agencies (n = 6 organizations), NGOs (n = 4), international organizations (n = 2), and academia (n = 2) in Mexico. Interviews were conducted between March and June 2023. To understand and describe barriers to breastfeeding among informally employed women in Mexico according to key informants and the current and potential policies to address these barriers, we conducted a qualitative thematic analysis. Results: Current policies to promote, protect, and support breastfeeding predominantly apply to all employed women, but respondents expressed concern that they did not provide adequate protection for women in informal employment. Additional themes concerned the need for relevant programs to be institutionalized and coordinated, discussions of breastfeeding as a right, and the legal equivalence (whether true in practice or not) of formal and informal workers. Conclusions: Women employed in Mexico's informal sector face a dearth of maternity protections. According to key informants, few policies exist to promote, protect, and support breastfeeding among employed women, in general, but the economic vulnerability and challenging working conditions of women in informal employment exacerbates their situation. The lack of access to formal labor protections, such as paid maternity leave, creates a significant barrier to breastfeeding for women in the informal sector. Recommendations include short-term policies to fill gaps in social protection for informally employed women, as well as longer-term solutions such as the development of universal social protection programs and supporting formalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Longstanding evidence in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries shows a high prevalence of unemployment and informality among a large fraction of population, and at the same time gender disparities in labour force participation and occupational mobility. Why is there such persistent labour‐market segmentation? What is the impact and potential of various formalisation policies? An overview of the informal economy across three middle‐income MENA countries (Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia) is provided with respect to taxonomy, coverage and drivers. Transition matrices and multinomial logistic regressions are applied to longitudinal microdata from Labour‐Market Panel Surveys, focusing on workers' occupational mobility in relation to their previous status, age cohort, gender and other demographics. Persistent segmentation and low occupational mobility in all countries suggest that informal employment is not driven by choice on the labour supply side but by structural constraints on the demand side. Existing formalisation policies based on distinct stick and carrot strategies, and targeting of existing businesses and workers achieve rather modest impacts. One recommendation to supplement policies for decent jobs creation is to promote social and solidarity enterprises and extend microfinance to informal enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides an in-depth examination of gender differences in informal employment and its time evolution in Brazil, uses an LSTM model to quantitatively predict gender differences in informal employment and its evolution in Brazil, and explores the deeper reasons that lead to gender differences in informal employment based on labor market segmentation theory and gender role theory. The predictive analysis shows that Brazilian male and female informal employment will show a slight downward trend from the fourth quarter of 2023 to the third quarter of 2026, and that male informal employment is generally higher than that of females throughout the time series. In addition, market segmentation theory reveals that the structural segmentation of the informal employment market as a peripheral component of lower wages and social security affects the sexes differently, while gender role theory further expands on socio-cultural expectations of men's and women's behaviors and occupational choices, highlighting the reinforcement of gender differences by these structural barriers. Ultimately, the study makes policy recommendations to promote gender equality and improve the conditions of informal employment in support of the sustainable development goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Al Bashaer Economic Journal is the property of Al Bashaer Economic Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Given that agricultural exports play an important role in the country's export agenda, the study hypothesis is that agricultural exports positively and negatively affect the number of jobs in the agricultural and non-agricultural sectors, respectively. With this, the objective is to investigate the effect of the agricultural exports of the Brazilian states on the agricultural and non-agricultural labor market, considering the period from 2002 to 2015, through the method of Instrumental Variables. The main results revealed that agricultural export exposure significantly expanded agricultural employment, demonstrating to be a strong factor in boosting rural income. However, non-agricultural employment was negatively affected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. In many cases, informal employment is forced and associated with vulnerability and discrimination of workers, who may be limited in wages, social protection, professional growth and promotion, etc. The state and trends associated with the sphere of informal employment require constant monitoring. To make the right economic decisions, it is important to have timely information. The purpose of the work is to study the level, structure and dynamics of informal employment in the Russian Federation. Materials and methods. To achieve this goal, secondary analysis of data provided by the Federal State Statistics Service and the Russian Public Opinion Research Center was used. During the study, systemic and institutional approaches were applied. Results. The category of informal employment includes carrying out labor activities in the informal sector and carrying out labor activities in the formal sector without formalizing labor relations. The average age of people employed in the informal sector is growing and in 2023 was 41,5 years. Despite the fact that Russian society has a fairly high tolerance for “black” earnings, the number of such payments is decreasing. Conclusions. The study showed a decrease in the number of people employed in the informal sector in 2017–2023 and a decrease in the number of people employed simultaneously in the formal and informal sectors.

In Mexico, approximately 55% of the working population is employed informally, contributing 24.4% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2022. This study analyzed the impact of wages, taxes, government spending, and unemployment on the informal economy of Mexico from 1980 to 2022, as well as its relationship with the tertiary sector’s contribution to the GDP. The methodology of the study was structural equation modeling. The findings of this study revealed that an increase in taxes, the unemployment rate, and the minimum wage in Mexico tends to be accompanied by a rise in informal employment. Finally, a unitary change in the latent variable informality affected the growth of the tertiary sector’s contribution to the GDP by 0.37 units.

In developing countries like India, the majority of the workforce is informal. There is no specific study about the important factors that influence the consumption expenditure of informal workers working in urban areas. The purpose of this paper, thus, is to identify the determinants of the consumption expenditures of urban informal workers, and the same is explored with respect to migration and gender. In this regard, a primary survey was conducted at the household level of the informal sector workers following the method of multi‐stage stratified sampling. The method of analysis of variance and a binary logistic regression model is employed. The inferences of the study explained that the expenditure pattern of the informal worker depends on socio‐economic factors—age group, income level and essential commodities like milk, kerosene, oil and child education. The study also highlights the fact that the informal workers are dragged into the web of a vicious circle of poverty due to a higher level of consumption expenditure than income and demonstrates the effect of betel‐tendu leaf mini cigarette‐tobacco‐alcohol. Hence, it is desirable that the policymakers should frame a regulated subsidised pricing policy for essential commodities as well as increase the minimum wage rate in order to strengthen the basic consumption expenditure of the informal workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serbia, while undergoing its post-socialist transformation, began its integration into global economic courses. This path included both changes to labor laws and the creation of new regulatory mechanisms with the aim of achieving greater labor market flexibility. The trends of decreasing labor regulation in the context of the post-socialist transformation promote more independent management of the labor force by the employers with the aim of a more effective response to the dynamic changes in the market, which ultimately leads to concern in terms of job security for the future. From the point of the view of the worker, security is an important job aspect, providing continued economic stability but also in a certain sense allowing workers to plan their life activities. The subject matter of this paper is job security in the labor market in Serbia in the context of the transformation of the labor market in accordance with the requirements of flexibility. The basic aim of the paper is the identification of trends based on the criterion of job security, but at the same time the paper analyzes jobs based on the type of employment contract and the rate of informal employment. The results indicate a noticeable trend of decrease in permanent employment with a subsequent increase in temporary employment. At the same time, the relatively stable rate of informal employment indicates that labor market flexibilization did not achieve the goal of "transferring" informal workers from the illegal into the legal sphere of employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 crisis has been one of the most significant events in recent history. Informal traders who depend on a thriving tourist market have been especially vulnerable to COVID-19. The resultant travel bans affected South Africa's tourism-related informal economic activities. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of the pandemic on informal traders' livelihoods and resilience in Cape Town, South Africa. Tourists have always constituted a large proportion of informal traders' customer base. They are often willing and able to spend more than locals. The impact of travel bans on traders' income, profit margins, and livelihoods has been disastrous. However, many traders have shown commendable resilience. There were obviously limits to the effectiveness of their mitigating strategies. There is an urgent need (from a social justice and a pure economic perspective) for further relief and assistance to supplement street traders' efforts to survive as international tourism recovers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informal employment has been identified as an important social determinant of health. This article addresses the processes through which informal employment affects workers' health in Chile. The study's methodological approach was based on qualitative interviews with 34 formal and informal workers. The findings show how workers perceive informal employment as negatively affecting their mental and physical health through different dimensions of their living and working conditions. Incorporating a gender perspective proves to be integral to the analysis of these processes. The article concludes by discussing how neoliberalism underlies such vulnerability processes and negatively impacts on the population's health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers policymakers a novel tool for calculating employment multipliers. A theoretical model incorporating a non-tradeable employment function is combined with a stochastic frontier methodology to estimate an accurate multiplier. The advantage of this model is that it allows a consideration of unobserved informal employment when estimating the multiplier. We find an employment multiplier effect of 1.2 jobs in the non-tradeable sector for one job in the tradeable sector. Also, the greater the number of skilled consumers, the higher the multiplier indices and the lower the level of informal employment. Moreover, specialised sectors requiring skilled workers also present less informal employment. We use provincial data for Spain over the period 1995–2013. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. The paradoxicality of which lies in the fact that with a lack of official institutional trust of the population in the authorities, it flows into informal, criminal and semi-criminal social spheres, into corrupt social ties and groups, and into the informal economy, shadow employment. The purpose of the article is to conduct a sociological theoretical and methodological analysis of the paradoxical forms of institutional social trust in Russian society in the form of corrupt and shadow economic ties. Materials and Methods. Empirical data on the shadow labor market in the Russian Federation were obtained in the course of mass and expert surveys conducted in 2021 in 10 regions of the Russian Federation and 2 megacities. In the course of preparing this publication, general scientific, logical methods were used, structural-functional, sociocultural, anthroposociocultural, projective approaches in modern sociology, the method of sociological imagination, the methodology of analysis and the formation of “we-groups”. Results. In the course of the authors’ research, it was found that such negative social phenomena as domestic and business corruption, shadow (informal) employment are a paradoxical form of expression of institutional trust in society. The paradox of the sociological correlation of corruption and shadow employment with institutional trust only at first glance seems illogical and contrary to sound scientific understanding. As a result of the analysis, the authors have revealed that with a lack of basic institutional trust of the Russian population in state and municipal authorities, social trust flows into informal, semi-criminal and criminal spheres. It has been proved that corruption and informal employment as forms of social practice become forms of expression of specific political trust based on strong social ties (blood related, kindred, friendly) in Russian regions. The authors’ team determined that corruption and informal employment are becoming a type of informal social self-organization of society, which close the gap between the political communications of the elite and the expectations of civil society. Discussion and Conclusion. Corruption and the informal economy are becoming a paradoxical form of manifestation of situational, horizontal, institutional trust based on strong (blood related, kindred, friendly) ties, on the social ties of “we-groups”, on the atomism of the Russian regional society. This research can be practically used by sociologists, lawyers, criminologists, social psychologists, law enforcement officers of the Russian Federation.

Abstract Background Informal employment is unprotected and unregistered and it is often characterized by precarious working arrangements. Although being a global phenomenon and the most common type of employment worldwide, scholarly attention to its health effects has only recently accelerated. While there is still some debate, informal employment is generally understood to be detrimental to workers’ health. However, because women are more vulnerable to informality than men, attention is required to the health consequences of female workers specifically. We conducted a systematic review with the objective to examine the global evidence on the consequences of informal employment, compared to formal employment, on the health of female workers and their children. Methods We searched peer-reviewed literature in Embase, Medline, PsychInfo, Scopus and Web of Science up until November 11, 2022. No restrictions were applied in terms of year, language or country. Individual-level quantitative studies that compared women of reproductive age in informal and formal employment, or their children (≤ 5 years), were eligible for inclusion. If studies reported outcomes per subgroup level, these were included. Study quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist and a narrative synthesis of the results were conducted. Results 13 articles were included in the review, looking at breastfeeding outcomes (n = 4), child nutritional status and low birthweight (n = 4), antenatal health (n = 3), and general health outcomes for women (n = 2). The overall evidence from the included studies was that compared to formal employment, there was an association between informal employment and worse health outcomes, especially on child nutritional status and antenatal health. The evidence for breastfeeding outcomes was mixed and showed that informal employment may be both protective and damaging to health. Conclusion This review showed that informal employment is a potential risk factor for health among female workers and their children. Further research on the pathways between informal employment and health is needed to strengthen the understanding of the health consequences of informal employment.

Copyright of Ekonomik Yaklaşim is the property of Ekonomik Yaklasim Dernegi (Ekonomik Yaklasim Association) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: There is a steadily increasing trend in obesity globally and in Sub-Saharan Africa that disproportionately affects women in most places. This is not different in Uganda, where the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey indicated an increase in obesity among women of reproductive age as measured by the body mass index (BMI). However, studies on the predictors of obesity in women are still limited. Particularly, studies using specific indicators of body fat are scant. This study explored the socio-demographic predictors of obesity as indicated by total body fat percentage among women in the age range of 18 to 69 years old living in Mukono Central Division in Central Uganda. Methods: A cross sectional study design using quantitative methods was employed. A total of 384 women between 18 and 69 years old from Mukono Central Division in Central Uganda were randomly recruited. A structured questionnaire was used to collect socio-demographic data including age, level of education, marital status, childbearing status, household expenditure, household size and employment status. Total body fat percentage, the indicator for obesity was measured using the body composition meter from TANITA. The data was analyzed using multinomial logistic regression analysis using SPSS version 20. Results: 155 women, nearly two fifths (40.4% CI 95% 38.4–42.4) were classified as obese. Age, marital status, childbearing status, and employment status were the factors that were associated with obesity among these women. Employment status was the only variable that remained significantly associated with obesity among the women after adjusting for other factors. Unemployed women were nearly two times more likely to be obese than the employed women (AOR 1.9; 95% CI 1.1–3.1). The prevalence of obesity among the unemployed and employed women was 48.2% and 34.4% respectively. Conclusions: Obesity in women was predicted by employment status. An in-depth study on factors that predispose unemployed women to obesity, will be instrumental in guiding interventions to curb the emerging obesity epidemic in Uganda. In the same vein, strategies to reduce levels of unemployment among women living in urban Uganda are essential for protecting public health from the dimension of reducing obesity levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper quantifies trends, patterns and controversies in the industrial amber market. To achieve the common goal, the amber market was assessed taking into account geographic data and companies' technology entrepreneurship opportunities in order to determine the competitiveness of the suppliers from economies with large amber reserves. The analytical study integrates a statistical approach and technical analysis of data, including correlation. The statistical approach describes the structure of an amber mining company through estimated profits. In a comprehensive way, the estimated indicators explain the amber industry's production and economic activities, with an emphasis on the Russian Federation. The findings suggested that the Russian Federation, with its Kaliningrad Amber Factory with a weak business infrastructure, is the global leader in the amber market. The economic interests of the company's corporate governance focus on exporting raw amber and rebooting the production system based on transparent and legitimate economic relations, and the development of own jewelry production facilities. The findings can be used by companies to plan effective growth strategies and prepare for future challenges in the amber industry, as well as by companies that plan to implement startup ideas in the amber deposit areas. In particular, the strategies may include investing in new technologies, cooperation with scientific institutions, development of processing facilities, compliance with international quality standards and product certification, as well as effective marketing strategies. These measures can help solve challenges and increase the position of companies in this area in the global market. Aimed at supporting the sustainable development of the amber industry, these strategies will help it achieve greater stability and success in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the relationship between types of employment and wages by gender and gender pay gaps among permanent, temporary, and informal workers. There are substantial gender inequalities in bargaining, and these inequalities are argued to be more prevalent for temporary and informal jobs. Hence, larger wage penalties for women in such positions are expected. Moreover, the inverse association between wages and non-permanent contracts is larger for low-paid women. To this end, the study employs unconditional quantile regression techniques and counterfactual decomposition analysis, and accounts for selection bias. The dataset is based on labor force surveys over the period 2005–19 in Turkey and focuses on private sector employees. The findings highlight the disproportionate impact of temporary and informal employment on women's earnings and suggest that employment type can be a contributing factor to the gender pay gap in Turkey, particularly for low wage groups. In Turkey, employment opportunities, social norms, and gender roles limit women's bargaining power. Gender inequalities in bargaining can vary significantly across employment types. Women employees with temporary or informal jobs suffer from larger pay penalties. Residual gender pay gaps are larger for low-paid temporary and informal workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Ciencias Sociales (13159518) is the property of Revista de Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad del Zulia Venezuela and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Drawing upon qualitative data on Albanians residing in Italy and Greece, this article furnishes new insights into the topic of undeclared migrant construction workers' agency. It analyses different types of undeclared work through Katz's theoretical framework that suggests a disaggregated conceptualisation of agency. In so doing, it adds to thinking on the factors shaping fluidity between types of agency and challenges dichotomous views on passive or voluntary participation. The article also highlights that mutual interests between workers and employers enable migrant builders to defy and resist state regulations, despite the impacts of undeclared work on workers and the fact that power dynamics are unequal. Thus, the main contribution the article makes is to suggest a more nuanced understanding of labour agency that may go beyond the conflict between employers and workers. Overall, the article highlights the relevance of this study for different economic sectors, geographical areas and migrant groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents new evidence on the causal link between fertility and female labor supply by focusing on how informal employment interacts with maternal labor supply. We employ an IV strategy based on an unused data source for twin births in Turkey|a large middle-income country with extensive labor informality. We find that, following the first birth, female labor supply declines significantly and mothers who drop out of labor force are mostly the informally employed ones. This is contrary to the perception that informal jobs might be easier to sustain during motherhood as they are more flexible. Following further increases in family size, formally employed mothers start dropping out of labor force and their hours of work also decline. Higher fertility also leads to lower wages and lower job search intensity among mothers. We document substantial differences between maternal versus paternal labor supply in response to changes in family size. Unlike mothers, fathers increase their labor supply, which mostly comes from elevated informal employment|possibly due to a decline in their reservation wages. As a result, wages decline, hours of work increase, and job search activity shifts from formal to informal search methods for fathers. These results suggest that higher fertility might be associated with increased vulnerabilities and high labor income risks in countries with pervasive labor informality. Our estimates are robust to using alternative IV specifications based on gender composition of siblings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Illegal labour activity is a multi-sided notion, which shows a whole set of processes dealing with arising, realizing and terminating labour relations between worker and employer, in case infringement of law and formal standards takes place. The goal of the research is to work out trends of lowering risks of illegal labour activity in national and sectoral aspects. The authors formed the methodological basis of the research by materials of investigations in the field of economic security and shadow economy, illegal and informal labour activity and risk management. Statistic and analytical materials of international and national statistic services were used as information foundation of the research. In the research the authors used general-scientific and specific economic methods that allow us to study the problem of illegal labour activity in a complex way, for instance, content-analysis, statistic analysis, revealing cause and effect links. Serious attention was paid to finding reasons and consequences of illegal labour activity and key branches of economy, where processes of illegal labour activity are the most obvious. Practical importance of the research is connected with using tools of risk management in state regulation and identifying measures of counteraction and barring cases of illegal labour activity. According to the authors state regulation in the field of illegal labour activity shall be based on monitoring and analysis of social and economic situation, forecasting trends and specification of plans of social and economic development.

Bu çalışmada, sosyal parafiskal yük kavramının teorik çerçevesinin belirlenmesi, bu kavramı etkileyen ve bu kavramdan etkilenen olguların ortaya konulması ve Türkiye’de sosyal parafiskal yük seviyesinin ne düzeyde olduğuna ilişkin verilerin paylaşılıp değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Sosyal parafiskal yük kavramı rakamsal olarak ortaya konulabilse de asıl önemli olan husus bu yükün hissedilme derecesidir. Bu noktada sosyal güvenlik sisteminin finansal yapısı, kayıtdışı istihdam düzeyi, prim affı/yapılandırmaları, yaptırımlar, işsizlik düzeyi gibi hususlar sosyal parafiskal yükü etkileyen önemli olgular olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır. Türkiye’de sosyal parafiskal yükün özellikle işverenler üzerindeki etkisini azaltmak ve böylece özellikle kayıtdışı istihdam ve işsizliğin önüne geçmek amacıyla istihdam teşvikleri etkin olarak kullanılmaktadır.

Youth in Egypt face compounded difficulties from the widespread use of fixed-term and informal employment. However, the relationships between these jobs and mental health remain to be evaluated among employed youth. This paper investigates the effect of transitioning from non-employment into employment on the mental health of youth younger than 30 years old. I differentiate jobs based on security and formality, focusing on the variation between permanent, temporary, casual/seasonal, and informal employment. Using nationally-representative panel data, I estimate the impact of various employment transitions on mental health outcomes by applying a matched difference-in-differences design. Transitioning to temporary, seasonal, and casual jobs has no significant effect on mental health compared to staying in non-employment. The psychological benefits are gendered. The gain for women is on the prevalence of mental illness, while men see an improvement in the depth of mental illness. For women, transitioning to a formal job provides the highest mental health rewards, while for men, a transition to a permanent job yields the highest mental health rewards. More consideration for the various types of employment and mental illness is required when studying non-standard employment.

Understanding the drivers of informal employment would go a long way in addressing such problems as underdevelopment, poverty, and unemployment. Therefore, this study investigates the impact of governance and economic factors on informal employment in West Africa. The governance factors considered are control of corruption, government effectiveness, quality of governance, regulatory quality, rule of law, political stability and absence of violence as well as voice and accountability, while the economic factors are income per capita, unemployment rate, tax burden, inflation rate, and household spending. The neo-liberal model is the theoretical framework underlying the study. Using panel dataset collected on 16 West African countries for the period of 2010-2020, the study estimated the fixed and random effects regressions of the model. The results show that quality of governance, unemployment rate, per capita income and urban population all had a negative impact on informal employment. Therefore, quality of governance, unemployment rate, per capita income and urban population negatively influence the proliferation of informal employment. Hence, policymakers should focus on improving the quality of governance, reducing the unemployment rate, increasing the income per capita, and controlling the urban population in order to discourage informality in West Africa.

This article argues that to understand housing as domestic only is a misconception. People intensify the use of their homes in ways that create substantial economic opportunities, urban services, and a range of social protections for themselves and their communities. The research presented here introduces the concept of 'space-use intensity', influenced by time-use surveys, Jane Jacobs's ideas on mixed-use, and the continuum approach to the informal economy, as conceptualized by Elinor Ostrom. Further, it describes the 'house interview' methodology devised to document spaceuse intensity and presents findings from houses in informal sett lements in Bogotá, Kampala, Dar es Salaam, and Dakar. The data reveal that houses are less than a third residential (29 per cent), almost half of the uses are economic (47 per cent), and they provide a fair share of urban or community services (24 per cent). This visual methodology demonstrates that local governments are overlooking 83.8 per cent of the activities taking place within homes. In sum, the evidence discussed here shows that homes contribute significantly to the urban economy and public services, making space-use intensity analysis instrumental in the design of effective housing, urban, and social protection policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Working at home is a ubiquitous practice across the globe with varying degrees of recognition and visibility subject to the context in which it is undertaken. In the Global South, even as home-based work is a dominant mode of informal urban employment, there is limited recognition and scholarship on the sites where it is undertaken and the inadequacies in which these sites are embedded. This essay seeks to provide a framework to think about the spatiality of the workhomes which are sites where users undertake activities related both to their work and the home. We argue that the particularities of cities in the Global South, which are marked by its spatial and economic informality, have specific implications on workhomes. The framework is provided by examining the spatial, material, tenurial, and infrastructural aspects across three scales - that of the individual workhome, at the sett lement scale, and at the meso-level spatial aggregations in the city. Through this, we present implications for planning and policy making to improve conditions for workhomes and those who use their homes for work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Management & Economics Research is the property of Journal of Management & Economics Research and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Transformations in Business & Economics is the property of Vilnius University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: The article aims to indicate the determinants of informal employment in registered enterprises using company-level evidence from Poland. Research Design & Methods: The survey conducted among Polish small and medium-sized (SME) enterprises in 2018 was used to find the driving forces of informal employment in Poland. The adequate sample comprised 952 representative surveys derived from the computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI). The quantitative analysis was based on the logistic regression. Findings: The findings indicate that among the main drivers of informal employment, one can distinguish the level of tax morality of owners or company managers and the administrative difficulties related to setting up a business. The role of non-economic factors in creating informal activities was confirmed. Moreover, informal employment was more prevalent in smaller companies operating in the construction industry. Implications & Recommendations: Our analysis may be helpful for both research in entrepreneurship and tax evasion and the shadow economy stream. It indicates the heterogeneity among Polish enterprises related to the involvement in informal activities, particularly informal labour. Our study sheds light onto the less known dimension of 'grey activities' existing in the registered companies, which is less frequently analysed in the literature. Contribution & Value Added: This evidence will help us understand the primary motives for using the informal workforce and enhance further research on the nature and extent of informal employment and the shadow economy in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Informal employment is unprotected and unregistered and it is often characterized by precarious working arrangements. Although being a global phenomenon and the most common type of employment worldwide, scholarly attention to its health effects has only recently accelerated. While there is still some debate, informal employment is generally understood to be detrimental to workers' health. However, because women are more vulnerable to informality than men, attention is required to the health consequences of female workers specifically. We conducted a systematic review with the objective to examine the global evidence on the consequences of informal employment, compared to formal employment, on the health of female workers and their children. Methods: We searched peer-reviewed literature in Embase, Medline, PsychInfo, Scopus and Web of Science up until November 11, 2022. No restrictions were applied in terms of year, language or country. Individual-level quantitative studies that compared women of reproductive age in informal and formal employment, or their children (≤ 5 years), were eligible for inclusion. If studies reported outcomes per subgroup level, these were included. Study quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist and a narrative synthesis of the results were conducted. Results: 13 articles were included in the review, looking at breastfeeding outcomes (n = 4), child nutritional status and low birthweight (n = 4), antenatal health (n = 3), and general health outcomes for women (n = 2). The overall evidence from the included studies was that compared to formal employment, there was an association between informal employment and worse health outcomes, especially on child nutritional status and antenatal health. The evidence for breastfeeding outcomes was mixed and showed that informal employment may be both protective and damaging to health. Conclusion: This review showed that informal employment is a potential risk factor for health among female workers and their children. Further research on the pathways between informal employment and health is needed to strengthen the understanding of the health consequences of informal employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]