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Skill differentiation between formal and informal employment

Author

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  • Enlinson Mattos
  • Laudo M. Ogura

Abstract

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the existence of skill differentiation between formal and informal labor markets. Design/methodology/approach - First, a theoretical model is developed under the assumption that concealment of production is increasingly costly for informal firms. Second, using data on the Brazilian self‐employed economy, two methods are utilized to compare earnings in the formal versus the informal economy: propensity score and instrumental variable (IV) methods. For the IV estimations, state‐level variables are used as instruments for individual's decisions. In addition, the effect of schooling on formality choice is analyzed. Findings - The theoretical model implies that more productive firms tend to operate formally and the proportion of workers employed by formal firms is larger for higher skilled workers. In the empirical analysis, it is found that formal firms are more productive than informal firms, controlling for workers' characteristics, and that higher workers' skill increase the probability of formal operation, as predicted by the theoretical model. Originality/value - The paper provides an original theoretical model of skill differentiation in labor markets and empirically evaluates the implications of the model.

Suggested Citation

  • Enlinson Mattos & Laudo M. Ogura, 2009. "Skill differentiation between formal and informal employment," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 36(5), pages 461-480, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:eme:jespps:v:36:y:2009:i:5:p:461-480
    DOI: 10.1108/01443580910992384
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Montoya, J & Jurado, A., 2021. "Calidad del empleo agregado, formal e informal: un análisis para la economía colombiana en el periodo 2007 -2019," Documentos de trabajo - Alianza EFI 19290, Alianza EFI.
    2. Jales, Hugo & Yu, Zhengfei, 2020. "Labor market policies in a Roy-Rosen bargaining economy," CLEF Working Paper Series 29, Canadian Labour Economics Forum (CLEF), University of Waterloo.
    3. Araujo, Ricardo Azevedo & Loureiro, Paulo Roberto & Souza, Nathalia Almeida, 2011. "An Empirical Evaluation of an Evolutionary Game Theory Model of the Labor Market," MPRA Paper 30408, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Christine ABLAZA & Mark WESTERN & Wojtek TOMASZEWSKI, 2021. "Good jobs and bad jobs for Indonesia's informal workers," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 160(1), pages 143-168, March.
    5. Gaetano Lisi & Maurizio Pugno, 2015. "A matching model of endogenous growth and underground firms," International Journal of Economic Theory, The International Society for Economic Theory, vol. 11(4), pages 347-369, December.
    6. Arbex, Marcelo & Galvao, Antonio F. & Gomes, Fábio Augusto Reis, 2010. "Heterogeneity in the Returns to Education and Informal Activities," Insper Working Papers wpe_216, Insper Working Paper, Insper Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa.
    7. Ricardo Azevedo Araujo & Helmar Nunes Moreira, 2014. "Lyapunov stability in an evolutionary game theory model of the labour market," Economia, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics], vol. 15(1), pages 41-53.
    8. Araujo, Ricardo Azevedo, 2011. "Lyapunov Stability in an Evolutionary Game Theory Model of the Labor Market," MPRA Paper 29957, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Edward Nissan & Shahdad Naghshpour, 2013. "Connecting corruption to ethnic polarization and religious fractionalization," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 40(6), pages 763 - 774, November.

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