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The "alternative", "atypical" or "informal" workforce has grown in developed and developing countries alike. One of the more recent evolutions of informal employment has been of informal employment within formal enterprises. In the interest of flexibility and cost‐reduction, many formal firms increasingly resort to hiring workers on a temporary or informal basis. Alongside, and perhaps, as a result of the persistence and pervasiveness of informal employment, issues relating to inequality have come to the fore. This paper is motivated by these two intertwining aspects of Indian labor market—informality and wage inequality. Using nationally representative sample data, the paper examines trends in wage inequality among various forms of informal workers, overlaying these findings with broader trends in inequality. Using a regression based inequality decomposition, the paper compares the sources of wage inequality across different employment groups and the reasons for differences in wage inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present research examines the issue of how the minimum wage and informal employment impact differences in income earnings. To this end, a Censorship Model is proposed that uses data codified for a subset of the population. Calculations for this model were performed using two econometric methods: Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM). In both cases, microdata from the National Occupation and Employment Survey where used for each federal entity, covering the period of 2005-2014. The results demonstrate that the minimum wage widens the gap in income earnings, while the informal sector has a reducing effect on differences in income earnings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to assess differences in the working population of Chile under the definition of informal employment. A new categorization of informal employment is proposed, with a focus on social protection as a key element in the definition of informal employment status, thereby making visible different groups of workers that until now remained hidden. From a mixed methodological strategy that combines literature review, key informant interviews, and quantitative data analysis, the researchers seek to understand the complexity of the social phenomenon of informality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses whether liberalisation has moderated or aggravated India's employment problems. Since the Modi government's election in 2014 and the introduction of the flagship "Make in India" policy, various government officials and academics have argued that India's employment situation has improved and is showing promising signs of growth and development. However, in this article, it is argued that India's liberalisation policies have generated numerous problems: employment has delinked from GDP growth due to the increasing financialisation of accumulation; job growth is equal to or below labour force growth; and informalisation is increasing. A structural shift is occurring in India and is causing rural–urban migration due to increased agricultural input costs, reverse tenancy and the mechanisation of agriculture without the creation of new employment. This has led to a redistribution of existing employment in the urban informal sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informality often concerns policymakers due to its negative implications on productivity and poverty. In recent years, the extent of informal employment has diverged across Mexican states. Varying informal employment dynamics within a comparable institutional environment offers scope to identify policies that can reduce informality. This paper uses cross-state panel and individual data to examine the determinants of informal employment, exploiting the diverging outcomes across states, industries and time. The results suggest that there is no 'silver bullet' to combat informality, yet a package of policies promoting labour skills, encouraging foreign investment, enhancing tax enforcement and deterring corruption can reduce informal employment. Intriguingly, reducing the cost to start a business is found to have a non-linear effect on informal employment, conditional on the prevalence of microenterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides new analytical insight into migrant labour by examining a newly emergent low-margin sector, hand car washes (HCWs). The sector is co-created by pressures from above in the form of economic restructuring and from below by employers and migrants who diffuse fluid and flexible low-wage employment. The diffusion of HCWs demonstrates how exploitative privatized employment generates autonomous economic growth in the unregulated economy. The formal and informal economies are however interlinked and overlapping within and beyond the labour process. Locally, HCWs have the potential to become the established car wash sector, putting regulated outlets in a state of uncertainty as informalization in employment if not business practice becomes the norm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence for three decades or more indicates that wage inequality has consistently increased in most labour market segments in India. This paper focuses on how informalisation, migration, segmentation, and social discrimination, which operate most significantly at the lower end of the labour market, have contributed to well-being deficits and rising labour market inequality. There is a large and growing wage gap between formal and informal workers in the organised sector after controlling for other characteristics of the workers. On average, workers who are allocated formal or informal work in the organised sector have very similar characteristics. Across both formal and informal work, while education and experience improves wages, female and low-social-status workers have lower wages, controlling for other characteristics. This paper argues that seasonal and circular labour migrants form a growing segment of the informally employed. Poor and low-caste workers form a disproportionate proportion of such workers. Seasonal/circular migrant workers usually form the lowest rung of labour at organised sector work sites. They are segmented and fragmented by the recruitment process and along lines of caste, sex, ethnicity, language and region. This segmentation and fragmentation creates the basis for capital to acquire low-cost, highly flexible labour, who work long hours and take up the most dangerous work. This paper shows that the process of labour segmentation in Indian labour markets builds on well-entrenched processes of social discrimination but has assumed new forms as the workforce has become more mobile and informalised. Gender-based labour segmentation builds on the culturally determined social reproduction responsibilities of female workers and other socio-cultural factors. This paper concludes that while the above processes are linked to the underlying dynamics of capitalist growth in India, more equitable labour market outcomes at the bottom of the pyramid can be achieved through the provision of suitable social protection, sensible labour market regulation and a more comprehensive anti-discrimination framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of informal workers and their working conditions and employment precariousness in the EU-27; and to explore the association of different contract arrangements with health outcomes and how they are influenced by working and employment conditions. Methods A sample of 27 245 working-age employees from the fifth European Working Condition Survey of 2010 was analysed. Logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the contribution of different contract arrangement (permanent, temporary and informal) and working and employment precariousness variables on health outcomes (psychosocial well-being and self-rated health). Results Prevalence of informal employees in the EU-27 is 4.1% among men and 5.1% among women. Although informal employees have the poorest working conditions and employment precariousness, they did not seem to reflect poorer health. Precariousness employment variables have a greater impact than working conditions variables in reducing the association between health outcomes and type of contract arrangement, especially in the case of informal employees. Conclusions Informal employment in the EU-27 is characterized by worse working conditions and employment precariousness than the conditions for formal employees. There is no evidence at all that being in informal employment implies better health outcomes compared to permanent employees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture is one of the sectors that absorbs a significant part of the labor force in the Republic of North Macedonia. Having this in mind the impact of employment in agriculture on the socio-economic development is observed in this paper, through the changes in the scope and structural features of the agricultural workers and relevant indicators for their developmental impact. The results of the analysis show that the impact of employment in agriculture on the socio-economic development of the country was and still remains modest. Mainly it is determined by the economic status of agricultural workers and very high vulnerability of the employment in this sector (85% of them in 2017 were self-employed and unpaid family workers). This suggests that there is "hidden unemployment" in agriculture, as well as informal employment on a large scale. The financial support in agriculture in the period 2011-2017 resulted in a slight increase of formal employment. Due to low income, employment in the agricultural sector does not have a significant impact on the growth of private consumption as a major determinant of economic growth in the country. Beside that this sector is characterized by low productivity and small share in the total gross added value e.i. relatively low impact on the economic growth rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the growing recognition that unregistered employment remains a common problem both in South-East Europe and well beyond, there has been little evidence available on its prevalence and distribution. This paper contributes to filling the gap, by utilising data from a 2017 large scale national representative survey of 8,533 households in Kosovo. This reveals that 34.6% of all employees are engaged in unregistered employment (i.e., they have no employment contract). A Probit regression analysis reveals significant associations between unregistered employment and individual, household, employer and job-related characteristics. Unregistered employment is significantly more prevalent among men, younger people, single, widowed or divorced, those with fewer years in education, living in rural areas and in larger households. It is also significantly more prevalent among those working in construction and services, part-time employees, with shorter employment durations, lower wages, and those in elementary occupations and craft and related trades. The wider theoretical and policy implications are then discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential trade-off between environmental protection and employment stability has been a concern in the literature. However, in the case of China, the employment issue has not been adequately addressed despite government's big push on investing in renewable energy since 2007. This essay addresses the employment issue through estimating the relative employment impacts of renewable energy investments versus spending within the traditional fossil fuel sectors based on input-output modeling with China-specific data of sector and subsector weighting techniques. I find that spending within three segments of the renewable energy sectors – solar, wind and bioenergy, will produce in combination about twice as many jobs per dollar of expenditure than an equal amount of spending on fossil fuels. I also find that, more than 70 percent of jobs from renewable energy sectors are created in the informal economy. This raises questions about the quality of the jobs created through renewable energy investments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Panorama Económico is the property of Universidad de Cartagena 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 theoretical frameworks that explain the impact of trade openness on informal employment suggest an ambiguous effect. This has been verified in a few countries, based solely on microeconometric evidence. This study contributes to the literature by specifying a macroeconometric relationship for a panel of 17 Latin American countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revue d'Économie Régionale & urbaine is the property of Librairie Armand Colin 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 PRAKSIS is the property of PRAKSIS 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 employment emerges as a reflection of informal economy. Informality, as in many developing countries, is a cause of social and economic problems in Turkey as well. Informal employment sometimes emerges from the fact that the activities carried out are not reported to the relevant institutions and organizations. It other cases, it arises as a result of the fact that the activities carried out are not reported to the relevant institutions and institutions at their actual values. However, whatever the case, the loss of informality tends to exhaust the country's economy day by day. The study reveals the situation of informality for the companies of construction TR32 region in Turkey. In this context, 2016 Household Labor Force Survey of Income and Living Conditions micro data sets of Turkey Statistical Institute are utilised. On the other hand, in-depth interviews are conducted with employees and employers of the companies operating in the construction sector in the province of Denizli. In this scope; it is found that informal working in the construction sector is higher than the general informality rate, but it is also found that those working in the construction sector in TR32 region have less informality compared to the general rate. Approximately 78% of those who were born outside of Turkey are determined to be unregistered; the illiterates are found to be working more informally than the illiterates, and it is found that part-time workers are more informal than full-time workers. Moreover it is also determined that as the income of the individuals increases, the informality decreases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Lebret is the property of Universidad Santo Tomas, Bucaramanga 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 describes the modern understanding of the category of "New Normality" in the field of employment, including its informal segment. In the economic discourse of the problems of informal employment, the authors indicate two meanings of the category "New Normality": the first one characterizes informal employment as a new objective norm (as a characteristic, widespread, and stable phenomenon) of the present and the future; and the second one reflects the transformation of the sphere of employment, including its undeclared segment, in the process of creating a "New Normality" under the influence of demographic changes, globalization, digitalization and other global trends. Analyzed the main global trends contributing to the normalization of informal employment in modern macroeconomic development. Particular attention is paid to the trend of digitalization and significant social challenges due to its spread, first of all, the narrowing of the field of social and labor relations, the growth of unemployment, and the spread of informal employment. Established the factors that determine undeclared labor activity as a new norm of functioning of the global labor market. The authors substantiate the key systemic risks of transforming a high level of undeclared work into a "New Normality" of Ukraine's social and economic development. They include structural degradation of the national economy; demographic limitation for the potential of long-term economic growth; general institutional weakness and the strengthening of destructive institutions; high imbalance in the professional structure of labor demand and supply; and a significant deficit of decent work. One of the priorities of the national policy of state regulation should be the development of mechanisms to counteract and minimize the influence of the above mentioned five systemic factors, which would lead to the transformation of undeclared work in Ukraine into a "New Normality" of its socio-economic progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines informality during the political and economic turmoil that accompanied the Arab Spring revolution in Egypt. The paper focuses on unprotected employment and the extent to which it changed by educational level immediately after the January Uprising of 2011. We find that over time and particularly after the revolution, informal employment has increased for both high‐ and low‐educated workers, albeit through different paths: high‐educated workers were more likely to be stuck in informality, while low‐educated formal workers were more likely to lose their contracts. The increase in informal employment in the wake of the Arab Spring is more pronounced for the high‐educated. The results suggest a high level of rigidity in the Egyptian labour market, even in the wake of the Arab Spring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we aim to present some aspects regarding employment in the informal sector of the economy as well as the main aspects that distinguish the informal sector of the economy from the formal sector. We will refer to the structure of the informal sector in terms of occupation, as well as to its main features and traits, focusing on the three main criteria: the social, political and economic criterion. With regard to the structure of the informal sector, we will focus on the three categories of labor force, small enterprises (micro-enterprises) or formal (registered) firms but also part-time and informal activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper studies the correlation of the scope of the shadow economy and agriculture and validates the statement that growth in the share of the agricultural sector in GDP leads to growth in the shadow economy. The results of testing the statistical correlation of the scope of the shadow economy in the Russian regions and indicators reflecting the agricultural scope are presented (the share of the rural and urban population in the total population, the share of agricultural production in GRP). The research methodology includes an analysis of the approximation curves constructed based on scatter diagrams using the indicator of the share of the urban population and the logarithm of shadow sector indicators. Russian Federal State Statistics Service data and the authors' calculations of the scope of the shadow economy in Russian regions for 2002–2013 are used. Overall, the authors confirm the hypothesis on existence of a direct correlation between the scope of the shadow sector and share of agriculture in the economy. A noticeable correlation between the scope of the shadow economy in regions with the share of the rural population and a moderate correlation with the share of agriculture, hunting, and forestry in the GRP is revealed. A tendency toward an increase in informal employment in nonagricultural types of activity is specified. It is concluded that population migration from the countryside to cities, and increase of the urban population will contribute in the future to an increase in the scope of the shadow economy in the least urbanized regions and a decrease thereof for regions with a medium level of urbanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the increasing informality in Pakistan accompanying the fluctuating industrial growth in the wake of economic liberalization. The percentage distribution of labour in informal employment by major industry divisions is used as a proxy for the informal sector. A dynamic panel data model is constructed to analyze cyclicality and industry layering of informal employment. It is found that a declining tariff rate increases informality, confirming the structuralist hypothesis. There also exists a static subset which is marginal and growth-retarding. The results imply a structured and targeted policy for each subset to deal with undesirable features of informal employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines whether the Action Plan for Promoting Employment and Combating Unemployment, a labor market intermediation program adopted by the Algerian government in 2008, reduced the informality of employment in Algeria. Using repeated cross-section data from the Household Survey on Employment for the period from 1997 to 2013, and a difference-in-difference methodology, we estimate whether the Action Plan has reduced the probability that workers are employed informally in enterprises of more than 5 workers - the type of enterprise that is most likely to be directly affected by the Action Plan. Our results show that the Action Plan has in fact contributed to reducing employment informality in such enterprises, but with heterogeneous effects. More precisely, it reduced informality for employees of establishments of 10 workers or more but had no significant effects on informality for those working in enterprises of 5 to 9 workers. Furthermore, when we restrict our estimates to new entrants only, we do not find statistically significant effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Work-related injuries occurring during informal work often go unreported, yet lead to significant mortality and contribute substantially to disease burden due to injury-related disability. In Serbia, injury is a leading cause of death, with work-related injuries comprising a significant proportion. This study explored the frequency of and risk factors for these injuries in a rural Serbian community. During the 12-month study period, physicians from a municipal Primary Care Centre reported all presenting injuries using a specific injury report form. One in four injuries reported occurred during informal work practices, accounting for 71% of all reported work-related injuries. These occurred within the household in 85% of cases, and were more severe in males (79%). Regarding work-related injuries, informal workers were significantly older than formally employed workers, regardless of sex. Public policy should address safety improvements for informal workers, via provision of relevant training and protective equipment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The labour market suffers from several imperfections, most of which act against the women. They face entry barriers which act as a deterrent and discourage them to enter labour market. Using nationally representative sample data collected by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) 2011-12 through quinquennial surveys on "Employment and Unemployment", the paper tries to examine the prevalence of various forms of inequality and the condition of workers across formal and informal sectors, as well as across gender, location and work status. Oaxaca decomposition technique (Oaxaca 1973) is also used to examine the contribution of inequality factors to overall inequality. A substantial wage disparity is found across workers of different regions, sectors and gender. Women workers earn much lower wages than their male counterparts and the inequality among them is also much higher. The analysis also suggested a comparatively a high gender wage gap in various categories of activities. It is surprising to find that in India the wage disparity exists mainly because of large wage difference within the various categories of workers. Further, the examination of the sources of wage difference reveals that gender wage gap is mostly because of discrimination in wage distribution against women workers. The endowment is the greater contributing factor in case of wage gaps between regular and casual workers and also for rural and urban divides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Aksaray University Faculty of Economics & Administrative Sciences / Aksaray Üniversitesi Iktisadi ve Idari Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi is the property of Aksaray 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.)

Copyright of Journal of Social Security / SGD-Sosyal Güvenlik Dergisi is the property of Journal of Social Security / SGD-Sosyal Güvenlik Dergisi 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 employment became a serious challenge for the Ukrainian economy during its adjustment to market conditions. Trends of the number of workers participating in the informal sector have been rising for the last years. The research presents the current state of informal employment in Ukraine. Detailed attention is paid to labour distribution across different population categories. We examine labour market of Ukraine using the data of Ukrainian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey for the year 2007.

Informal economy is rather difficult to define and demarcate in the methodological context. International Conference of Labour Statisticians in 2003 adopted a set of guidelines regarding definition of statistical categories of informal employment. These include for example employed unregistered own-account workers, contributing family workers, persons who work based on oral agreement, etc. Informal economy is a contentious topic in many developing countries as it brings about many elements that from several aspects adversely affect the development. The most commonly stressed are the fiscal implications (associated with tax revenue loss) and some social concerns. However, in some parts of the world informal sector went from being considered as a negative occurrence to be tolerated as a partial solution to some of the challenges that hinder development of rural regions and communities. The aim of the paper is to determine the relationship between informal economy and level of development and quality of life in Ukrainian regions. The paper examines the role of informal economy in regional structure of Ukraine, while confronting the findings with regional divergence in relevant indicators of development and quality of life. There are statistically significant differences in the size of the informal employment among different types of Ukrainian regions (by rural-urban typology). With increasing share of informal employment in the regions, the income level of households decreases significantly even when we take into consideration the level of unemployment.

Birçok dünya ülkesi gibi Türkiye’nin de önde gelen sorunlarından birisi olan kayıtdışı istihdam mikro anlamda işveren ve çalışanlar makro anlamda ise devlet adına ciddi bir politika aracı haline gelmiştir. İşverenlerin ödemek zorunda kaldıkları vergi takozu unsurları ile devletin çalışanlar üzerinden elde etme hakkı olan kamu gelirleri kayıtdışı istihdamı tetikleyerek kayıtdışı istihdamın maliyetini de artırır hale gelmiştir. Bu çalışma ile Türkiye’de esas işleri nedeniyle hiçbir sosyal güvenlik kuruluşuna kayıtlı olmayanlar dikkate alınarak kayıtdışı istihdam ve kayıtdışı istihdamın maliyeti tahmin edilmeye çalışılmıştır. Çalışmanın sonucunda kayıtdışı istihdamın maliyetinin artışında; kayıtdışı istihdam rakamları kadar vergi takozu rakamlarındaki artışın da önemli bir etken olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.

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.