EVALUATING THE GENDER VARIATIONS IN INFORMAL SECTOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP: SOME LESSONS FROM BRAZIL

2013 ◽  
Vol 18 (01) ◽  
pp. 1350004 ◽  
Author(s):  
COLIN C WILLIAMS ◽  
YOUSSEF YOUSSEF
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Developing Nations ◽  
Gender Disparities ◽  
Survival Strategy ◽  
Marginalized Populations ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Gender Variations ◽  
Micro Enterprises

The aim of this paper is to evaluate critically the gender variations in informal sector entrepreneurship. Until now, a widely-held belief has been that entrepreneurs operating in the informal sector in developing nations are lowly paid, poorly educated, marginalized populations doing so out of necessity as a survival strategy in the absence of alternatives. Reporting an extensive 2003 survey conducted in urban Brazil of informal sector entrepreneurs operating micro-enterprises with five or less employees, the finding is that although less than half of these entrepreneurs are driven out of necessity into entrepreneurial endeavor in the informal economy, women are more commonly necessity-driven entrepreneurs and receive lower incomes from their entrepreneurial endeavor than men despite being better educated. The outcome is a call to recognize how the gender disparities in the wider labor market are mirrored and reinforced by the participation of men and women in the realm of informal sector entrepreneurship.

Commercialising innovations from the informal economy

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gautam Sharma ◽  
Hemant Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Informal Sector ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Institutional Support ◽  
Developing Nations ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Local Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Grassroots Innovation ◽  
Grassroots Innovations

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to discuss the commercialisation mechanisms of the innovations that emerge from the informal sector of Indian economy. Also known as grassroots innovations, they are said to better fit with the local market demands and conditions in the developing nations of the world. The paper discusses the grassroots innovation ecosystem in India and the role that is played by the state in providing institutional support. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on an exploratory study using both the primary and secondary sources of data. Primary data are taken from the interview of the innovators during the field work, whereas secondary data are acquired from research articles published in various journals indexed in Scopus and web of sciences, government publications and reports. The annual reports of National Innovation Foundation are analysed to gather information and to build the arguments for this paper. The secondary data are also collected and evaluated from the database of the grassroots innovators available on Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network. Findings The paper provides insight into how the grassroots innovations are commercialised in India through different pathways such as social entrepreneurship, technology transfer and open source technology. It takes four case studies to discuss the institutional support to the grassroots innovator and the challenges in the diffusion of the grassroots innovations. Research limitations/implications Due to the chosen research approach, the results cannot be generalised on all grassroots innovations. Researchers are encouraged to conduct a survey of more grassroots innovations in order to derive generalised outputs. Practical implications The paper includes implications for understanding the diffusion process of grassroots innovations that can be useful for all the emerging and developing nations. Originality/value The paper fulfils an identified need to study the diffusion modes of informal sector innovations and management of grassroots innovations.

EVALUATING WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IN THE INFORMAL SECTOR: SOME EVIDENCE FROM INDIA

2011 ◽  
Vol 16 (03) ◽  
pp. 351-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
COLIN C WILLIAMS ◽  
ANJULA GURTOO
Keyword(s):  
Rational Choice ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Women Entrepreneurs ◽  
Developing Nations ◽  
Quality Work ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Alternative Means ◽  
Low Pay ◽  
Mode Of Production

Studies on women entrepreneurs in the informal economy no longer view them merely as a residue from some pre-modern mode of production that is disappearing. Instead, they are either read through a structuralist lens as marginalized populations engaged in low quality work conducted under poor conditions for low pay out of necessity in the absence of alternative means of livelihood, or through a neo-liberal lens as engaged in relatively higher quality endeavours more as a rational choice. The aim of this paper is to evaluate critically these contrasting explanations. To do this, the results of face-to-face interviews with 323 women entrepreneurs operating in the Indian informal economy are analyzed. The finding is that although the structuralist representation is largely appropriate for women engaged in informal waged work, it is not as valid for women informal entrepreneurs working on a self-employed basis where incomes are higher, they receive more credit from informal institutions, union membership is higher, and such work is more likely to be a rational choice. The outcome is a call to recognize the diversity of women's experiences in the informal sector and that not all informal entrepreneurship by women in developing nations is a low-paid, necessity-oriented endeavour carried out as a last resort.

scholarly journals The Informal Sector Facing COVID-19: The Case of Cameroon

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 13269
Author(s):  
Faustine Kede Ndouna ◽  
Roger Tsafack Nanfosso ◽  
Jean Aristide Biloa Biloa Essimi ◽  
Laurent-Fabrice Ambassa
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Labor Market Participation ◽  
Informal Workers ◽  
Time Restrictions ◽  
Direct Support

This study aims to analyze the effects of COVID-19 on actors in the informal economy in Cameroon. To analyze the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on actors in the informal economy, we use secondary data from the National Institute of Statistics (NIS). These data come from a survey of 1310 households. We performed data analysis using comparative methods and a labor market participation model that considers changes in people’s behavior towards health risks in order to explore and compare empirical results with earlier studies. From this analysis, it was revealed that job losses are more important in the informal sector (and, in particular, among men). We note that the absence of wearing a mask decreases the chances of having an informal job and of being suspended from one’s job during the crisis. Likewise, time restrictions that are not appreciated by workers will push actors more towards the informal sector. These results lead to recommendations that contribute towards providing support or direct support to informal workers in the sector.

scholarly journals Velhice e trabalho: a informalidade como (re)aproveitamento do descartado

2006 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raimunda Silva D'Alencar ◽  
Juliana Britto Campos
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
The Other ◽  
Old People ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
De Se ◽  
The World ◽  
Commercial Center ◽  
Methodological Strategy

Resumo: Apesar das mudanças, as características do mercado de trabalho brasileiro permitem, de um lado, a ocupação precoce de crianças e jovens no mundo do trabalho e, de outro lado, o reaproveitamento de um contingente situado no outro extremo da escala etária produtiva, os da chamada terceira idade, legalmente jubilados desse mesmo mercado. A ocupação informal vem garantindo sobrevivência para parcela relevante da população, inclusive do idoso, ainda que já aposentado. Este texto propõe conhecer um pouco dessa realidade do trabalhador idoso na ocupação informal, o grau de satisfação e impacto da renda na sobrevivência da família. O trabalho foi desenvolvido em um centro comercial do município de Itabuna, sul da Bahia, com a utilização da entrevista semi-estruturada, junto a dezesseis idosos, homens e mulheres. Apesar de se constituir como uma necessidade fundamental para a sobrevivência da família, e apesar de ser um trabalho desenvolvido sob precárias condições, os idosos têm no trabalho um elemento de satisfação com a vida, de prazer e alegria de viver. Palavras-chave: Velhice. Trabalho Informal. Economia Informal. Abstract: In spite of the changes occurred in the Brazilian labor market, it, due its features, in a fi rst hand, allows precocious participation of children and youngsters in the world of labor, and, in the other hand, allows the reutilization of a great amount of people situated in the other extreme side of the age scale, the ones so-called as third age, legally excluded from the formal labor market. As a matter of fact, informal occupation guarantees subsistence to a relevant part of the population, including old people, even if they are retired. This text proposes to understand this kind of reality experienced by old workers in their informal occupation, their satisfaction with it, and its impact, in terms of income, to their family subsistence. The research was carried out with a group of sixteen old people, men and women, in a commercial center, in the county of Itabuna, South of Bahia, using as methodological strategy a semi-structured interview. In spite of the fact that the job is a fundamental need to subsistence of the old people and to their families, and, that it is carried out in precarious conditions, they consider it as an element of self satisfaction, of pleasure, and of cheerfulness to their lives. Keywords: Old Age. Informal Job. Informal Economy.

I’ll Just Stay Home: Employment Inequality Among Parents

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 394-418
Author(s):  
Lindsay B Flynn
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Gender Disparities ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Mothers And Fathers ◽  
Gender Parity ◽  
Policy Objectives ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Employment Inequality

AbstractHow does homeownership magnify existing gender disparities in the labor markets of the rich OECD countries? Men and women, and especially mothers and fathers, respond to homeownership differently. Owners work more hours than renters but mothers experience an ownership penalty while fathers solidify their market attachment. Both responses increase the gender gap. As such, governments pursuing dual policy objectives of promoting homeownership and greater gender parity in the labor market will find their policies working at cross-purposes. This paper analyzes the effect of homeownership on labor market attachment and explains why mothers and fathers respond to it in different ways.

POLICY SUPPORT FOR INFORMAL SECTOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP: MICRO-ENTERPRISES IN INDIA

2009 ◽  
Vol 14 (02) ◽  
pp. 181-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANJULA GURTOO
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Policy Research ◽  
Strategic Orientation ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Developing Nation ◽  
Entrepreneurial Spirit ◽  
Micro Enterprises ◽  
Research And Policy

This paper highlights the presence of a hidden enterprise culture in the Indian informal economy (versus a necessity driven view) and draws a developmental framework to harness micro-enterprise owners. Policy research has typically taken a welfare approach toward studying the informal sector in the developing countries. Therefore, the agenda has been to create a favorable environment for survival instead of cultivating entrepreneurship and facilitating their growth. Conversely, this paper explores a strategic orientation for the informal sector. The proposed framework balances entrepreneurial spirit of the individuals, market dynamics of the economy, and socio-economic imperatives of a developing nation. Implications for research and policy are also drawn.

Implications of higher retirement age for the labor market

2017 ◽  
pp. 22-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Ivanova ◽  
A. Balaev ◽  
E. Gurvich
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Supply ◽  
Labor Force ◽  
Labor Demand ◽  
Retirement Age ◽  
Demographic Trends ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Demographic Projections ◽  
The Impact

The paper considers the impact of the increase in retirement age on labor supply and economic growth. Combining own estimates of labor participation and demographic projections by the Rosstat, the authors predict marked fall in the labor force (by 5.6 million persons over 2016-2030). Labor demand is also going down but to a lesser degree. If vigorous measures are not implemented, the labor force shortage will reach 6% of the labor force by the period end, thus restraining economic growth. Even rapid and ambitious increase in the retirement age (by 1 year each year to 65 years for both men and women) can only partially mitigate the adverse consequences of demographic trends.

Social Norms, Choice, and Work

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christie Hartley
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Social Norms ◽  
Division Of Labor ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Personal Relationships ◽  
The Political ◽  
Liberal Democracies ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Gendered Division Of Labor

In modern liberal democracies, the gendered division of labor is partially the result of men and women making different choices about work and family life, even if such choices stem from social norms about gender. The choices that women make relative to men’s disadvantage them in various ways: such choices lead them to earn less, enjoy less power and prestige in the labor market, be less able to participate in the political sphere on an equal basis, make them to some degree financially dependent on others, and leave them at a bargaining disadvantage and vulnerable in certain personal relationships. This chapter considers if and when the state should intervene to address women’s disadvantage and inequalities that are the result of gender specialization. It is argued that political liberals can and sometimes must intervene in the gendered division of labor when persons’ interests as free and equal citizens are frustrated.

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