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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]

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.)

Informal labour has become one of the main ways of earning income and a reason for non-payment of taxes to the state budget. Governments and international organisations are making many efforts to study the phenomenon of informal labour and formulate proposals for further formalisation of informal labour to «come out of the shadows» of activities in various fields. The relevance of our study is due to the rapid spread of informal employment and informal labour in various spheres of society, which entails economic losses for each state and a lack of faith in the declared labour relations. The purpose of the study is to identify possible ways and prospects for formalising informal labour, to determine the legal aspects of formalising informal labour, to analyse the challenges to the social protection of workers in the course of such formalisation, and to improve the current labour legislation. The author formulated legal conclusions on the legal aspects of formalisation of informal labour, the ways of such formalisation and its prospects. In particular, conclusions on social challenges for all participants in the so-called informal labour relations were pro-vided. Finally, proposals for improving the legislation on informal employment were formulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Declaration by the Labour and Employment Ministers of the BRICS countries, “Quality Jobs and Inclusive Employment Policies,” guarantees that formalization of labor markets is a global priority for the BRICS countries, as informal employment hampers productivity, potential economic growth and efforts to improve the welfare of populations worldwide. Taking into account this strategic goal, the authors analyze the informal employment processes in the BRICS countries and speculate on the transition from informal to formal employment. The article addresses the issues of inhomogeneous notional ranges used to define informal employment and recommends that the possibilities provided by labor legislation and government employment policy (such as increasing the number of formal working places and dynamic development of labor legislation directed at regulation of new employment forms) be used to tackle these issues. The potential of the social security right for achieving the goals of transition to a formal economy and social security coverage is characterized in detail; various legal forms of social security (for example, government social security, social insurance (mandatory as well as voluntary) and social support) are analyzed; and the possibilities of their application to informal workers in the BRICS countries are defined.

The paper is devoted to the analysis of the main reasons for the spread of informal employment in the labor market. The factors that have the greatest impact on it are highlighted. The influence of the level and dynamics of the number of people employed in the informal sector on the level and dynamics of the population's income, labor productivity and economic growth is studied. Based on the results of the study, it is concluded that there is a relationship between low incomes in the economy that give rise to low quality jobs and low qualification requirements and the growth of hidden forms of employment that provide low incomes for the population. In particular, the labor productivity of the informally employed is 22–25% lower than that of the personnel of organizations, and their withdrawal from the "shadow" could help increase the total wage fund in 2020 by 6.8 billion rubles (including income tax). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Декларация Министров труда и занятости стран БРИКС “Квалифицированные рабочие места и инклюзивная политика в области занятости” гарантирует, что формализация рынков занятости является глобальным приоритетом для стран БРИКС, поскольку неформальная занятость препятствует производительности, потенциальному экономическому росту и усилиям по повышению благосостояния населения. Принимая во внимание эту стратегическую цель, авторы анализируют процессы неформальной занятости в странах БРИКС и размышляют о переходе от неформальной занятости к формальной. В статье затрагиваются вопросы неоднородного понятийного диапазона, используемого для определения неформальной занятости. Предлагается использовать возможности трудового законодательства и государственной политики в области занятости (увеличение числа официальных рабочих мест, динамичное развитие трудового законодательства, направленное на регулирование новых форм занятости). Подробно охарактеризован потенциал права на социальное обеспечение для достижения целей перехода к формальной экономике и охвату социальным обеспечением, проанализированы правовые формы социального обеспечения (государственное социальное обеспечение, социальное страхование (обязательное и добровольное), социальная поддержка), определены возможности их применения к неформальным работникам в странах БРИКС.

Kayıt dışı ekonomi hem ekonomik hem de sosyal etkileri olan çok yönlü bir olgudur. Kayıt dışı ekonominin işsizlik, gelir dağılımı, yoksulluk ve göç ile ilişkili olması sosyal politika bağlamında bir inceleme yapılmasının önemini ortaya koymaktadır. Bu çalışma da buradan hareketle sosyal politikanın temel uğraş alanı olan konularla kayıt dışı ekonominin ilişkisi üzerinden bir çıkarım yapma amacı gütmektedir. Çalışmada sosyal politikanın temel uğraş alanlarından olan işsizlik, gelir dağılımı-yoksulluk, göç ve kayıt dışı istihdam bağlamında yapılan çeşitli ampirik çalışmalardan yararlanılarak sosyal politikalar yapılırken kayıt dışı ekonominin önemli olup olmadığı tartışılmıştır. Çalışmanın sonucunda ise kayıt dışı ekonominin işsizlik, gelir dağılımı-yoksulluk ve göç ile olan ilişkisinde hem olumlu hem de olumsuz etkilerinin olduğu tespit edilmiş ve sosyal politikalar yapılırken mevcut sosyal sorunun daha da derinleşmemesi adına kayıt dışı ekonominin dikkate alınmasının gerekliliği vurgulanmıştır

Copyright of Revista Telos is the property of Revista Telos 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 Nigeria, a significant number of the active labour force exists within the informal economy. For these workers, decent work remains elusive. They are mostly unprotected by existing legal framework and lack basic work rights. One of such right is access to social protection. This lack of access to 'social protection', especially as it relates to their means of livelihood, results in exclusion and marginalisation, and violates the principles of social justice. However, the high financial and structural costs of providing the basic forms of social protection inhibits the Nigerian government from extending social protection to informal workers, even though they constitute the larger percentage of the national workforce. This therefore necessitates an innovative solution that extends social protection to informal workers, and at the same time is independent of the capacity limitations of the government. Based on a desktop research methodology, this article finds that Esusu cooperatives – an informal cooperative system popular among informal workers– represents an existing and functional structure through which social protection can be extended to Nigerian informal workers. Consequently, it is recommended that the 'Esusu Cooperative system' should be adopted and restructured as a means of extending social protection to informal workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Orientation: Day labouring is becoming more frequent in developing countries. Long spells of unemployment and the uncertainty of informal wage employment impact negatively on the subjective well-being (SWB) of day labourers. Research purpose: The aim of the article was to investigate the level and possible determinants of the SWB of day labourers in Pretoria and Windhoek. Motivation for the study: Up to now, only one study has been carried out in South Africa on the SWB of day labourers and none in Namibia. This study aimed to start filling this gap in the literature. The choice of the two cities was based on their status as the capital cities of two countries that are both experiencing increasing numbers of day labourers. Research design, approach and method: A mixed-method research design and purposeful sampling were used to obtain representative samples. Data were sourced from comparable surveys amongst day labourers in the two cities between 2015 and 2017. Questionnaires with quantitative and qualitative sections were completed during structured interviews with 290 and 80 day labourers in Pretoria and Windhoek respectively. The ordinary least squares model and ordered-probit analysis were employed to analyse the data. Main findings: In Pretoria, the number of dependents, the living conditions and whether they had a full-time job before were all significant in explaining the SWB of the day labourers. In Windhoek, education levels, total days without food, staying with their families and being a foreigner were also significant. Practical/managerial implications: The needs of the informally employed must be addressed in the integrated development plans of municipalities and integrated with day labour worker centres. Contribution/value-add: This is the first study to analyse SWB amongst day labourers in Namibia and lays the foundation for future expanded studies.

The purpose of this paper is to test the impact of the informal economy on unemployment in Algeria during the period 1991-2015 using the co-integration approach, proposed by Pesaran and all (2001) and the Autoregressive Distributed Lags model (ARDL) proposed by Pesaran and shin (1999), for the purpose of estimating both short- and long-term elasticities. The theoretical results of the research concluded that there is an inverse relationship between the informal economy and unemployment, which is considered as way to absorb unemployment, while on the econometric side, the study concluded that there is a positive relationship between the two variables, which contradicts the expectations of the economic theory, which assumes an inverse relationship between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic Development Review (2543-3490) is the property of Economic Development Review 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.)

The article examines the main indicators of the labor market in Russia given the global economic crisis. The main factors contributing to the slowdown in the growth rate of unemployment. Analyzed the degree of influence the diff erentiation of pay levels by type of economic activity to changes in the employment structure. Analyzed the level of employment in the informal sector of economy of Russia for 2007-2013 Studied the reasons for the growth of informal employment in Russia. As a result of the analysis the conclusion is made about the need to reduce informal employment.

The article presents a study of informal labour relations within the industrial enterprises of the Russian Empire based on materials from the Dnieper-Donets region during the period 1870–1917. The analysis is based on narrative writings created by the entrepreneurs and workers as primary sources, supplemented by analytical data collected by the zemstvo and state commissions. The article demonstrates that informal labour relations took various forms such as informal employment, manipulation with the workers’ wages, requiring and performing activates which were not listed in the employment contract, and corruption. The combination of mutual benefits and risks for the main stakeholders determined the system of informal labour relations. The omnipresence of these informal practices was due to the ignorance of both the employees and the employers concerning the relevant legislation. Inefficient state control over labour law also contributed to the expansion of informal institutions. During the last quarter of the nineteenth and early twentieth century, formal practices dislodged some informal variations. It happened due to the modernization of the work ethic on both the workers’ and the industrialists’ side, the strengthening of the regulatory and controlling role of the state, and, most importantly, the organizational changes within the industrial enterprises. The rise of large modern industrial enterprises with a hierarchy of salaried managers demanded a system of new, more formal labour relations between the employers and employees. However, the formalization of labour relations in the industrial enterprises in Russia was not a linear process. Some informal practices proved to be very viable and have survived to-date.

Se espera una revisión del modo de regulación del mercado laboral de acuerdo con el nuevo "código laboral", en circulación desde hace algún tiempo. El debate sigue abierto en cuanto a la "ilegalización" del trabajo informal o la "formalización" de la economía sumergida. El empleo informal (no afiliado a la seguridad social) se estima en 4,3 millones según la Encuesta Laboral de la ONS 2017. Esta economía contribuye alrededor del 35% a la formación del PIB. Estos hallazgos requieren un diagnóstico profundo antes de toda toma de decisión. ¿Qué se sabe sobre esta economía? ¿Qué enfoque se debería adoptar para evitar las tensiones sociales en el mercado laboral? El análisis propuesto está basado sobre una serie de informes, estudios y tesis sobre el mercado laboral, en particular el ámbito informal, así como una nueva explotación de datos estadísticos y textos reglamentarios realizados desde los años de 2000 hasta la actualidad. Esta reflexión aboga por una regulación gradual del funcionamiento del mercado laboral. La segmentación realizada es un procedimiento técnico operativo, es la reconstrucción del conjunto del mercado, con sus ramificaciones externas, que puede dar su inteligencia dinámica. Cualquier acción "improvisada" solo puede exacerbar las tensiones sociales que socavarían aún más a los trabajadores, a los empleadores y a la economía en general.

In our paper we try to combine the theories explaining the prevalence of informal work, using a regional approach. Reviewing the literature, we observe that, there is no evidence to confirm that the relationships that occur in cross‐country comparisons remain significant when we use regional data and analyse cross‐regional variations. Our general question is therefore whether there is simply more informal work in less‐developed regions, as the modernization theory asserts. Our analysis concludes that there is limited correlation between the prevalence of informal work and a region's level of development, whereas there is a significant positive autocorrelation between the extent of informal work in the analysed voivodships in Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Iş, Güç: The Journal of Industrial Relations & Human Resources is the property of Is, Guc: The Journal of Industrial Relations & Human Resources 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.)

Day labourers: A case study of the vulnerability of the social fabric and cohesion in South Africa's informal economy The concepts social fabric and social cohesion refer to complex and interdependent systems that exist in a community. Social cohesion includes aspects such as the level of respect people have for each other, people's experiences of belonging, identification with the community, identity, their experiences of social justice, and participation. Social cohesion is further evident in the extent that people are accepting each other, taking responsibility for themselves and others and providing safety and security. South Africa's political and racially-based history and the current high poverty and inequality do not provide a conducive context for a cohesive society. This is evident in the high prevalence of poverty, unemployment, crime, substance dependency and the neglect and abuse of women and children. Facilitating a socially cohesive society is high on the agenda of the current government, but the current policy frameworks and institutional structures cannot create a socially cohesive society. Failing to create a socially cohesive South African society is evident in the more than 50 000 day labourers who are standing on the street corners of our cities and towns daily, with the hope to access a job and an income for the day. Day labourers are unemployed people, mostly men, making a living by selling their labour and skills on the street corners of South African cities and towns. The growing number of day labourers who make a living in the informal economy is a clear indication that South Africa cannot absorb the unemployed in the formal economy. In particular, South Africa is unable to accommodate the low-skilled and uneducated labourers in the formal labour market. To make a living and survive in the informal economy imply an insecure existence. The aim of the article is to describe the socio-economic profile of the 3 830 day labourers interviewed during the first national study in South Africa as a case study that illustrates the vulnerability of the social cohesion and social fabric of poor families and communities surviving in the informal economy. The national study was implemented in two phases. The first phase lasted approximately two years, which were spent travelling throughout South Africa to determine on which street corners and open spaces the day labourers are standing in the cities and towns of South Africa. This reconnaissance phase of the study resulted in the estimation that there are at least 50 000 day labourers occupying street corners of South African towns and cities daily. The second, or fieldwork, phase of the research consisted of the completion of 3 830 interviews with day labourers throughout South Africa during 2007 and 2008. In this phase, the authors developed the survey instrument, recruited field workers, provided appropriate training and tested the questionnaire. This was followed by the sampling, where a combination of cluster and snowball sampling was used to proportionally represent the research population. A representative sample of approximately 9% enabled meaningful statistical analysis. All ethical principles were adhered to. The questionnaires were completed with the assistance of well-trained fieldworkers who were fluent in the languages spoken by the day labourers. The results of the study show that, given the high unemployment rate and slow economic growth in South Africa, the informal economy and day labouring are here to stay and should be supported with relevant facilitating policies and institutions/structures. Day labouring is furthermore a survivalist strategy and it implies an irregular income. It became clear that the day labourers in general have very low education and skills levels and will not be able to access formal labour in the current economic climate. Day labourers are the result of a vulnerable socially exclusive society. It will remain in an increasingly vulnerable exclusive society if not addressed through the implementation of policies and practices that will enhance social cohesion and strengthen the social fabric of the South African society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The informal economy is an obscure concept but it contains several economic transactions. It is a very difficult task to measure its size and dimensions, however economists have developed reliable methods to predict the size and impact of informal economy in a given country or economic region. Studies in Turkey and abroad indicate that informal economy in this country is considerably large and sprawling. Existence of informal economy is a significant problem in any country since it negatively affects the national economic system. So far, policies deployed to deal with the negative outcomes of informal economy in Turkey mainly focused on tax policies and wages. On the other hand, increased educational attainment and provision of contemporary educational programs should be considered as better means to reduce the size and negative impact of informal economy. However, before using education to solve problems related to informal economy, the educational system needs to be restructured along with other restructuring efforts in economy, politics and legal systems. Increased educational attainment should also contribute to resolution of such social problems as economic growth and unfair income distribution in the country.

We measure the size of informal employment using both labor market as well as energy consumption approaches. We find that the share of informal employment in total employment was increasingly most of the time between the mid-1990s and mid-2000s, and started steadily decreasing after that until now. This has two contradicting implications for the Chinese economy. On the one hand, it is good news for China’s progress in human development as the process of formalization often brings better income and welfare. On the other hand, for China’s capitalism this could be bad news since the labor costs are likely to continue increasing with a decline in the reserve army of labor. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Informal employment represents more than half of nonagricultural employment in most developing regions, contributes to the overall economy, and provides pathways to reduction of poverty and inequality. Support to the informal economy should include the expansion of occupational health and safety to include informal workers, based on an analysis of their work places and work risks. The paper presents main schools of thought and argues for a holistic understanding of the different segments of the informal work force and for policies and interventions tailored to the needs and constraints of these different segments. The paper recommends a policy approach which seeks to extend social protection, including occupational health and safety services, to informal workers, and to increase the productivity of informal enterprises and informal workers through an enabling environment and support services. The paper calls for a new paradigm of a hybrid economy which would value and integrate the informal economy alongside the formal economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The informal economy accounts for the bulk of employment in many emerging economies. Regulation theory suggests that all economic activity is characterized by a complex combination of formal and informal regulation. Looking at the case of Mozambique, this article explores the pressures towards and against formalization, and the forms regulation can take, drawing on qualitative research based on in-depth elite interviews and observation. The findings highlight how the State's role in promoting formalization of the informal economy is ambivalent; its approach incorporates both 'progressive' elements, which focus on the modernization of regulations and institutions, and 'conservative' elements, which inhibit this process of change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the prevalence of informality, this article proposes a typology for classifying countries by the extent and nature of employment in the informal economy, rather than by the composition of their formal economies. The author analyses ILO data on employment in the informal economy in 36 developing countries, and shows that there is a significant correlation between cross-national variations in the degree and intensity of informalization and cross-national variations in social and economic indicators such as levels of GNP per capita, corruption, poverty, taxation and social contributions. The article concludes by discussing implications for theory and policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this article is to provide a summary of the issues related to occupational safety and health and well-being among workers in the informal economy of Thailand, with a special emphasis on home-based workers. The reviewed literature includes documents and information sources developed by the International Labour Organization, the National Statistical Office of Thailand, peer-reviewed scientific publications, and master's theses conducted in Thailand. This work is part of a needs and opportunities analysis carried out by the Center for Work, Environment, Nutrition and Development--a partnership between Mahidol University and University of Massachusetts Lowell to identify the gaps in knowledge and research to support government policy development in the area of occupational and environmental health for workers in the informal economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to explain the cross-national variations in the tendency of employers to under-declare salaries by paying formal employees an undeclared (‘envelope’) wage in addition to their official declared salary. Analysing the prevalence, size and nature of envelope wage payments across 10 East-Central European countries using data from a 2007 Eurobarometer survey, envelope wage payments are found to be less common, smaller and more likely to be for extra work in wealthier, less corrupt and more equal nations with higher levels of taxation, social protection and effective redistribution via social transfers. The theoretical and policy implications are then discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the factors causing tax evasion on income from wages in Kosovo, who have contributed to revenue shortfall at a satisfactory level for government also affects the welfare of the employees when they will reach retirement age because Kosovo has organized pension system in a way that accounts for the Employed Individual pensions are means each pays and collects about themselves for retirement income. For this reason, the Employed who are not involved in the informal economy and do not shirk from income tax will have a strong base of income to increase their personal welfare but also the welfare of the country in general. To achieve this, this study was focused to answer the question: What are the factors that push businesses in Kosovo that their work activities to engage employed undeclared for tax purposes? Why Employers avoid taxes on wages even when the Employed are notifying the tax authorities? This paper will address exactly that, their deficiencies and Employed businesses and the problems they encounter. The basic method used is survey data and then are further processed and analyzed by descriptive statistical methods different charts. Also work builds on a theoretical analysis by developing a comparative analysis and descriptive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates critically the major competing perspectives regarding the participation of the unemployed in undeclared work. These are firstly, the ‘marginalisation’ perspective which holds that the unemployed disproportionately participate in and gain from undeclared work, and secondly, the ‘reinforcement’ perspective which holds that the unemployed benefit less from undeclared work than those in declared employment, meaning that undeclared work reinforces, rather than reduces, the inequalities produced by the declared realm. Reporting the results of a 2007 Eurobarometer survey on undeclared work comprising 26,659 face-to-face interviews conducted in the 27 member states of the European Union, the finding is that the marginalisation perspective is applicable to Southern Europe and the reinforcement perspective to Nordic nations. However, in East-Central Europe and Western European nations, as well as the EU-27 as a whole, the marginalisation and reinforcement perspectives are not mutually exclusive but co-exist; the unemployed are more likely to participate in undeclared work but receive significantly lower earnings and gain less from undeclared work than those working undeclared who are in declared jobs. The outcome is a call for a new ‘reinforced marginalisation’ perspective which holds that the unemployed disproportionately engage in undeclared work but their participation reinforces their marginalised position relative to the employed. The paper then seeks tentative explanations for these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]