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Beyond Negative Depictions of Informal Employment: Some Lessons from Moscow

Author

Listed:
  • Colin C. Williams

    (School of Management, University of Sheffield, 9 Mappin Street, Sheffield, S1 4DT, UK, C.C.Williams@sheffield.ac.uk)

  • John Round

    (School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK, j.round@bham.ac.uk)

Abstract

Informal employment is conventionally viewed as residual, marginal and sweatshop-like work that impairs urban economic development and social cohesion. Reporting data from 313 interviews conducted with Moscow households during 2005/06, this negative reading is found to apply to just one segment of the informal labour market in this post-socialist city— namely, informal waged employment. Examining the multiple types of informal employment conducted on an own-account basis, more positive impacts emerge of this sphere as the key seedbed for enterprise development and principal mechanism for delivering community self-help. The outcome is a call for a finer-grained understanding and more nuanced policy approach towards informal employment that recognises its plurality of forms and their varying consequences for economic development and social cohesion.

Suggested Citation

  • Colin C. Williams & John Round, 2007. "Beyond Negative Depictions of Informal Employment: Some Lessons from Moscow," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 44(12), pages 2321-2338, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:44:y:2007:i:12:p:2321-2338
    DOI: 10.1080/00420980701540945
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Byung–Yeon Kim, 2002. "The participation of Russian households in the informal economy: Evidence from the VTsIOM data," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 10(3), pages 689-717, November.
    2. Monder Ram & Trevor Jones & Tahir Abbas & Balihar Sanghera, 2002. "Ethnic Minority Enterprise in its Urban Context: South Asian Restuarants in Birmingham," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(1), pages 24-40, March.
    3. Colin Williams, 2005. "Unraveling the Meanings of Underground Work," Review of Social Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 63(1), pages 1-18.
    4. Simon Clarke, 2002. "Making Ends Meet in Contemporary Russia," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1951.
    5. Rainer Neef, 2002. "Aspects of the Informal Economy in a Transforming Country: The Case of Romania," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 299-322, June.
    6. Dominik H. Enste & Friedrich Schneider, 2000. "Shadow Economies: Size, Causes, and Consequences," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 38(1), pages 77-114, March.
    7. Friedrich Schneider & Dominik Enste, 1999. "Shadow Economies Around the World - Size, Causes, and Consequences," CESifo Working Paper Series 196, CESifo.
    8. Colin C. Williams & Jan Windebank, 2000. "Self-help and Mutual Aid in Deprived Urban Neighbourhoods: Some Lessons from Southampton," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 37(1), pages 127-147, January.
    9. Alessandra Guariglia & Byung‐Yeon Kim, 2006. "The dynamics of moonlighting in Russia," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 14(1), pages 1-45, March.
    10. Colin C. Williams, 2006. "The Hidden Enterprise Culture," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 3948.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Cited by:

    1. Colin C. Williams, 2023. "A Modern Guide to the Informal Economy," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 18668.
    2. Colin C. Williams & Ioana A. Horodnic, 2017. "Evaluating the Illegal Employer Practice of Under-Reporting Employees’ Salaries," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 55(1), pages 83-111, March.
    3. Colin C Williams & Junhong Yang, 2017. "Tackling falsely-declared salaries in Bulgaria: evidence from a 2015 survey," Economic Alternatives, University of National and World Economy, Sofia, Bulgaria, issue 3, pages 333-351, September.
    4. Colin. C. Williams, 2008. "Illegitimate wage practices in Eastern Europe: - The case of 'envelope wages'," Journal of East European Management Studies, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 13(3), pages 253-270.
    5. Williams Colin, 2009. "Evaluating the Extent and Nature of ‘Envelope Wages’ in the European Union: A Geographical Analysis," European Spatial Research and Policy, Sciendo, vol. 16(1), pages 115-129, June.
    6. Colin C. Williams & Jan Windebank, 2011. "Regional Variations in the Nature of the Shadow Economy: Evidence from a Survey of 27 European Union Member States," Chapters, in: Friedrich Schneider (ed.), Handbook on the Shadow Economy, chapter 5, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    7. Zoran Slavnic, 2011. "Struggle for Survival in the Deregulated Market: Re-commodification and Informalisation of the Taxi Sector in Stockholm," Forum for Social Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(2), pages 233-251, January.
    8. C. Williams, Colin & Bezeredi, Slavko, 2017. "Tackling The Illegal Practice Of Under-Reporting Employees’ Wages: Lessons From The Republic Of Macedonia," UTMS Journal of Economics, University of Tourism and Management, Skopje, Macedonia, vol. 8(3), pages 243-258.
    9. Colin C. Williams & Sara Nadin & Peter Rodgers & John Round & Jan Windebank, 2011. "Mapping the Social Organization of Labour in Moscow: Beyond the Formal/informal Labour Dualism," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 16(1), pages 43-53, February.
    10. Zoran Slavnic, 2011. "Struggle for Survival in the Deregulated Market: Re-commodification and Informalisation of the Taxi Sector in Stockholm," Forum for Social Economics, Springer;The Association for Social Economics, vol. 40(2), pages 233-251, July.
    11. Abbi M Kedir & Meryem Duygun Fethi & Colin C Williams, 2011. "Evaluating tax evasion in the European Union: a case study of the prevalence and character of ‘envelope wage’ payments," Discussion Papers in Economics 11/33, Division of Economics, School of Business, University of Leicester, revised Jun 2011.
    12. Colin C. Williams & Ioana Horodnic, 2015. "Are Marginalised Populations More Likely to Engage in Undeclared Work in the Nordic Countries?," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 20(3), pages 15-29, August.
    13. Colin C. WILLIAMS & Josip FRANIC, 2017. "Tackling the illegitimate under-reporting of salaries in Southeast Europe: some lessons from a 2015 survey in Bulgaria, Croatia and FYR Macedonia," Eastern Journal of European Studies, Centre for European Studies, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, vol. 8, pages 5-28, June.
    14. Gengzhi Huang & Desheng Xue & Bo Wang, 2020. "Integrating Theories on Informal Economies: An Examination of Causes of Urban Informal Economies in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-16, March.
    15. Dumenu, William Kwadwo & Appiah, Louis Gyekye & Paul, Carola & Darr, Dietrich, 2023. "Should forest enterprises formalize? Insight from a multi-dimensional characterization of informal baobab enterprises," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    16. Hasan Yuksel, 2021. "An Investigation on the Link between International Labor Migration and Undocumented Employment: Evidence from Turkish Cinema," Journal of Economy Culture and Society, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 64(64), pages 21-46, December.
    17. Colin C. Williams & John Round, 2008. "Gender Variations in the Nature of Undeclared Work: Evidence from Ukraine," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 13(4), pages 1-16, July.

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