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on Informal and Underground Economics |
| By: | Francesco PappadÃ; Yanos Zylberberg |
| Abstract: | This paper examines how the dynamics of informality affects optimal fiscal policy and default risk. We build a model of sovereign debt with limited commitment and informality to assess the consequences of dynamic distortions induced by fiscal policy. In the model, fiscal policy has a persistent impact on taxable activity, which affects future fiscal revenues and thus default risk. The interaction of tax distortions and limited commitment strongly constrains the dynamics of optimal fiscal policy and leads to (i) more frequent default episodes and (ii) costly fluctuations in consumption. |
| Date: | 2025–04–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bri:uobdis:25/795 |
| By: | Whitlock, Cassandra; Sterling, Genevieve; Kael'thas, Sunstrider; Géraud, DeVries |
| Abstract: | Labor market inequalities—including differences in income, gender, and employment type—play a critical role in shaping life expectancy disparities. This literature review synthesizes findings from 20 studies examining how formal versus informal employment, wage gaps, and occupational segregation influence longevity. Evidence indicates that secure, formal work and robust labor protections enhance life expectancy, while informal and precarious labor exacerbate disparities. The review highlights the mediating effects of socioeconomic status and gender, and identifies gaps for future research on integrated labor and health policies. |
| Keywords: | Labor market inequalities, Life expectancy disparities, Employment type |
| JEL: | J70 |
| Date: | 2024–12–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:126182 |
| By: | Lê Hồng, Nhung; Yīng, Wéi; Leander, Fintan; Desmond, Flint |
| Abstract: | Life expectancy is influenced by multiple social, economic, and demographic factors, with labor market participation emerging as a critical determinant. This literature review synthesizes evidence from 20 studies examining how employment status, labor quality, formal versus informal work, and socioeconomic factors shape population longevity. Findings indicate that formal, stable employment is associated with longer life expectancy, whereas informal or precarious work limits these benefits. Gender, income, and demographic dynamics further mediate the relationship, creating disparities in life expectancy across and within countries. Labor market regulations and social protections emerge as key mechanisms to enhance longevity and reduce inequalities. The review identifies gaps in longitudinal, comparative, and subgroup-focused research, highlighting opportunities for future studies that integrate labor, demographic, and health perspectives. |
| Keywords: | Labor market participation, Life expectancy, Formal and informal employment, Socioeconomic factors, Labor regulations |
| JEL: | J30 |
| Date: | 2025–03–13 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:126181 |
| By: | Cerkez, Nicolas; Cunningham, Wendy; Gupta, Sarika; Lung, Felix |
| Abstract: | A large share of workers in Sub-Saharan Africa earn a living through informal, low productivity household enterprises. While structural transformation toward formal wage employment is viewed as the long-term path to improving livelihoods, progress has been slow. In the meantime, small enterprises will remain a key source of employment for many years to come, making it important to better understand how to help such enterprises thrive. This paper uses original survey data from 1, 526 poor individuals across Liberia, Niger, and Senegal to examine the aspirations and constraints of urban household enterprise owners. The results suggest that most surveyed business owners voluntarily started their businesses, are satisfied with their jobs, and aspire to and have plans to expand their businesses. Most report that they earn more than they could as wage earners, with wage earners confirming the observations. However, a combination of family and business constraints and shocks may hinder their ambitions, ability to act on their goals, and realization of those goals. That said, two-thirds of micro-enterprise owners said they would accept a wage job if it offered wages on par with their current earnings. This suggests that households will continue to prefer firm ownership in the short run until structural transformation can improve earning potential of wage employment in the long term. The results suggest that household enterprise owners require a dual policy approach: one that improves current enterprise conditions while advancing longer-term structural reforms to expand access to quality wage employment. |
| Date: | 2025–10–20 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:11235 |
| By: | O'Connor, Mary-Jane; Yılmaz, Barış; Borgers, Nicholas; Fedotova, Zoya |
| Abstract: | Tourism is a major contributor to European employment, yet the sector is characterized by part-time work, seasonal fluctuations, informal employment, and gender disparities. This paper synthesizes recent empirical evidence and numerical data from Eurostat, OECD, and national case studies in Poland, Greece, and Italy to examine post-pandemic tourism labour market trends. Findings show that while tourism creates substantial employment—including spillover jobs in retail and transport—vulnerabilities persist, particularly for informal and female workers. For example, in Greece, 12–15% of tourism jobs are informal, while in Poland, employment dropped 28% during the COVID-19 pandemic, later recovering to ~90% of pre-pandemic levels. The analysis also highlights the role of labour market regulations, workforce sustainability, and skills development in shaping employment outcomes. Policy recommendations focus on balancing flexibility with security, promoting gender equity, supporting workforce development, and utilizing data-driven monitoring. The paper concludes that tourism employment can evolve from a source of vulnerability into a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable sector, provided that regulatory, social, and training interventions are effectively implemented. |
| Keywords: | Tourism employment; labour market dynamics; informal work; gender disparities; post-pandemic recovery |
| JEL: | J01 |
| Date: | 2025–08–28 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:126180 |
| By: | Devlina ((Corresponding author), Madras School of Economics, Gandhi Mandapam Road, Behind Government Data Centre, Kotturpuram, Chennai, 600025, India.); Santosh Kumar Sahu (Associate Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras) |
| Abstract: | This paper attempts to understand bribing in India’s informal business sector. Using World Bank’s informal sector business survey data, 2022, for three Indian states, we find that tax evasion and avoiding formal sector corruption are two primary reasons to continue in the informal sector. However, these reasons are insufficient for paying bribes as a way to stay informal. Businesses that cite these as primary reasons have a lower probability of bribing to continue operations in the informal sector. Instead, the probability of paying bribes is higher for those businesses that cite ease of registration and lack of knowledge & information about the registration process as one of the challenges in transiting to the formal sector. We also find that businesses with sales vulnerability and financial constraints have a higher probability of bribing to remain informal. To this view, policy focus should be on simplifying registration processes and spreading awareness and benefits of becoming a formal sector, which is in line with the theory of firm growth. Long-term investments that focus on improving the education and skills of informal owners and curb corruption should be considered. |
| Keywords: | Informal sector, bribe, corruption, sales-vulnerability, tax evasion, ease of registration |
| JEL: | D22 D73 L21 O17 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mad:wpaper:2025-291 |
| By: | He, Meng-Yun |
| Abstract: | This article examines the triple migration of young female live streamers performing street entertainment in Shenzhen, China. These second-generation rural-to-urban migrants navigate three intersecting trajectories: spatial mobility to urban centres, digital migration onto live-streaming platforms as precarious workplaces, and embodied negotiation of liminality where their bodily experiences blur online-offline boundaries. Drawing on multisensory ethnographic fieldwork, this study explores how sensory experiences, platform governance and systemic inequalities shape these women's precarious livelihoods. Beneath their public performances lie burnout, stigma and hidden injuries of inequality. By situating these women's experiences at the intersection of class, gender, rural-urban migration and platform capitalism, this research uncovers the intimate cost of precarious digital labour. It also highlights their resilience and creativity in navigating structural barriers. This study contributes to empirical and theoretical discussions on gendered labour, digital precarity and affective politics of precarity in contemporary urban China. |
| Keywords: | multisensory ethnography; rural-to-urban migration; platform gendered labour; digital precarity; embodied liminality; structural inequality |
| JEL: | R14 J01 |
| Date: | 2025–10–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:129509 |
| By: | Ignacio Carballo (Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina. Buenos Aires, Argentina.); Martín Grandes (Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas. Instituto Interdisciplinario de Economía Política (IIEP). Centro de Estudios de la Estructura Económica. Buenos Aires, Argentina.); Carla Chinski (Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas. Buenos Aires, Argentina. CONICET–Universidad de Buenos Aires. Instituto Interdisciplinario de Economía Política (IIEP). Buenos Aires, Argentina.) |
| Abstract: | The paper studies financial inclusion and the digital gap among residents of informal settlements in Argentina (2020–2021), based on a multidimensional survey in 20 settlements across 10 provinces, highlighting the role of digital payments and infrastructure constraints. |
| Keywords: | Financial inclusion; Digital payments; Informal settlements; Poverty; Argentina |
| JEL: | E26 G51 G2 O35 O54 |
| Date: | 2025–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ake:iiepdt:2025-98 |
| By: | Vásquez Cordano, Arturo Leonardo |
| Abstract: | Los sistemas de pensiones en el Perú han sido bastante criticados debido a su baja tasa de reposición, baja cobertura, bajos niveles de pensiones e insostenibilidad económica a lo largo de sus años de existencia. Bajo este contexto, el Gobierno Peruano ha planteado recientemente la necesidad de reformar estos sistemas para mejorar la situación de los actuales y futuros pensionistas. Sin embargo, un problema fundamental que afecta a estos sistemas es la estructura del mercado laboral peruano, la cual exhibe una alta tasa de informalidad laboral cercana al 80% de la población económicamente activa. Esta informalidad contribuye a generar un escenario poco propicio para los sistemas de pensiones, dado que la informalidad erosiona el mercado laboral formal, lo cual a su turno reduce la eficiencia en la gestión de los fondos de pensiones debido a la menor cantidad de trabajadores aportantes. Asimismo, la informalidad genera un problema de seguridad social pública a futuro, dado que los trabajadores optarán por no ahorrar para su vejez, lo cual generará a futuro un mayor costo social para el Estado. En ese sentido, en este documento se desarrolla un análisis de la problemática de los sistemas de pensiones en el país, el cual abarca la evaluación de los problemas de capacidad de ahorro de los peruanos, la baja competitividad de la economía para promover mayor actividad económica, así como la estructura del mercado laboral peruano que presenta un alto grado de informalidad. Asimismo, se discuten algunas medidas de reforma para mitigar los problemas que afectan a estos sistemas de pensiones. En particular, se evalúa la creación de un seguro de desempleo con la finalidad de reducir la probabilidad de que los trabajadores formales recurran al mercado informal en busca de ingresos. Asimismo, se explora también la alternativa de crear un esquema mixto de aportes previsionales, donde el Estado haga aportes contributivos en base a los fondos que recauda por conceptos de impuestos y donde los trabajadores realicen contribuciones a lo largo de su vida laboral. |
| Keywords: | Sistemas de pensiones, jubilación, reforma, pensión mínima, informalidad laboral, COVID-19. |
| JEL: | J21 J26 J46 |
| Date: | 2025–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ger:dtrabj:011 |