1st Edition

Formal and Informal Work The Hidden Work Regime in Europe

Edited By Birgit Pfau-Effinger, Lluis Flaquer, Per H. Jensen Copyright 2009
    260 Pages 3 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    274 Pages 3 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Informal work – family care, voluntary work, and undeclared or unregulated work – is a critical form of labor in today’s economy, yet remains underanalyzed and examined. This volume develops a comprehensive conceptual framework of informal work and analyses systematically the relationship of formal and informal work. Using a coherent theoretical and methodological approach, this volume explores informal and formal work in six countries and contributes to our empirical knowledge of informal work and its different interrelations with formal work in various societies. A landmark study in the analysis of work, the book demonstrates how the relationship of formal and informal work is developing, how this can be explained in the specific context of the arrangement of work and welfare, and in which ways informal work possibly contributes to social integration and social cohesion.

    Part I: Introduction to the Approach of the Book  1. The Development of Informal Work in the Work-Welfare Arrangements of European Societies Per H. Jensen, Birgit Pfau-Effinger & Lluís Flaquer  2. The Approach of the ‘Arrangement of Work and Welfare’ to the Cross-National Analysis of Formal and Informal Work Birgit Pfau-Effinger  Part II: Formal and Informal Work in the Diverse Arrangements of Work and Welfare in European Societies  3. Formal and Informal Work in the Danish Social Democratic Welfare State Per H. Jensen & Jakob Rathlev  4. Formal and Informal Work in the Work-Welfare Arrangement of Finland Arja Jolkkonen, Riitta Kilpeläinen & Pertti Koistinen  5. Formal and Informal Work in the Work-Welfare Arrangement of Germany Birgit Pfau-Effinger & Sladana Sakac Magdalenic  6. Formal and Informal Work in a Liberal Regime – The Case of Britain Traute Meyer & Graham Baxendale  7. The Metamorphosis of Informal Work in Spain: Family Solidarity, Female Immigration and Development of Social Rights Lluís Flaquer & Anna Escobedo  8. Formal and Informal Work in a Transition Country: The Case of Poland Aleksander Surdej & Ewa Slezak  Part III: Comparative Perspective  9. Formal and Informal Work in European Societies – A Comparative Perspective Birgit Pfau-Effinger, Per H. Jensen & Lluís Flaquer

    Biography

    Birgit Pfau-Effinger is Professor of Sociology at the University of Hamburg.

    Lluis Flaquer is Professor of Sociology at Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona.

    Per H. Jensen is Professor of Sociology at Aalborg University.

    "Using the latest conceptual tools and insights into the diverse nature of the informal sphere, this edited volume maps the interactions of formal employment and various types of informal work in a range of European-Union countries with differing welfare regimes, cultural values and gender arrangements. In so doing, it suggests how social policy might approach the informal sector not merely as a ‘problem’ but as having the potential to promote social integration. In consequence, it represents a considerable contribution to the study of the informal sector and the debates on the future of work and welfare in contemporary Europe."

    Jan Windebank, University of Sheffield