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Informality and work status

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  • Gary S. Fields

Abstract

The most important determinant of households' livelihoods is how much they earn for their labour. People in informal work are more likely to be low earners, to live in poverty, and to make fewer transitions into the higher-paying work statuses. The paper is divided into three main sections: what we mean by informality and work status, why we should differentiate between work statuses, and what we can learn by analysing work statuses and transitions between them.

Suggested Citation

  • Gary S. Fields, 2020. "Informality and work status," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2020-159, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2020-159
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    File URL: https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/Publications/Working-paper/PDF/wp2020-159.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Arnab K Basu & Nancy H Chau & Gary S Fields & Ravi Kanbur, 2019. "Job creation in a multi-sector labour market model for developing economies," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 71(1), pages 119-144.
    2. Fields, Gary S., 2012. "Working Hard, Working Poor: A Global Journey," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199794645.
    3. Gindling, T.H. & Newhouse, David, 2014. "Self-Employment in the Developing World," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 313-331.
    4. Gary Fields & Paul Cichello & Samuel Freije & Marta Menendez & David Newhouse, 2003. "Household income dynamics: a four-country story," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(2), pages 30-54.
    5. Fields,Gary S., 2005. "A guide to multisector labor market models," Policy Research Working Paper Series 32547, The World Bank.
    6. Ravi Kanbur, 2017. "Informality: Causes, consequences and policy responses," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(4), pages 939-961, November.
    7. Abhijit V. Banerjee & Esther Duflo, 2007. "The Economic Lives of the Poor," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 21(1), pages 141-168, Winter.
    8. Guillermo E. Perry & William F. Maloney & Omar S. Arias & Pablo Fajnzylber & Andrew D. Mason & Jaime Saavedra-Chanduvi, 2007. "Informality : Exit and Exclusion," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6730.
    9. Fields, Gary S., 1975. "Rural-urban migration, urban unemployment and underemployment, and job-search activity in LDCs," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 2(2), pages 165-187, June.
    10. Fields,Gary S., 2005. "A guide to multisector labor market models," Social Protection and Labor Policy and Technical Notes 32547, The World Bank.
    11. Enrique Alaniz & T.H. Gindling & Catherine Mata & Diego Rojas, 2020. "Transforming informal work and livelihoods in Costa Rica and Nicaragua," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2020-100, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
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    Cited by:

    1. Lourenco S. Paz, 2021. "How does import competition impact job type?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 41(3), pages 2063-2020.
    2. Carlos Salas-Páez & Luis Quintana-Romero & Miguel A. Mendoza-González & José Álvarez-García, 2022. "Analysis of Job Transitions in Mexico with Markov Chains in Discrete Time," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-13, May.
    3. Lourenco Paz, 2022. "Does age modulate the impact of import competition on job type?," Economics and Business Letters, Oviedo University Press, vol. 11(4), pages 161-171.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Informal work; Work status; Livelihoods; Poverty;
    All these keywords.

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