Tackling undeclared work

The European Commissions consultation process on 4th July focuses on the possible future EU measures to prevent and stop undeclared work through improved cooperation between Member States. Moreover, not only the EC communication “Towards a job-rich recovery” highlights the need for improved cooperation among Member States as to combat undeclared work, but also the recently-adopted Social Investment Packagecontains guidance to Member States that can help to prevent and deter informal work, by changing the tax system in a way to both reduce the phenomenon of undeclared work and the risk of poverty.
Consequently, this Keysource focuses on providing information about measures on tackling undeclared work in several EU countries.

Overviews

European platform to enhance EU cooperation in the prevention and deterrence of undeclared work/ EC Roadmap, April 2013, 9 p. This platform provides a general overview about undeclared work and mentions that the efficient administrative cooperation, the exchange of good practice and the creation of common guidelines are important measures to prevent and deter undeclared work.

Tackling undeclared work in the European Union/ Collin C. W et al., CesIfo Forum February 2012, 6 p.  This paper mainly analyzes both the extend of undeclared work  in Europe and the policy approaches towards undeclared work.

Tackling undeclared work in Europe/ Eurofound. In this web site you can find a short overview on tackling undeclared work and some sources on the Croatia and the four candidate countries about the undeclared work.

Analysis

Making legal work attractive, the mix of deterrence and prevention – A working paper for guidelines to tackle undeclared work/Implementing cooperation in a European  network against undeclared work, VP/2009/011, 2011, 66 p. This report proposes an initial survey of the models for integrating policies and good practice to prevent and stop undeclared work in Europe.

Ways to reduce undeclared work/ Gheorghiu V, Perspectives of Business Law Journal, Volume 1, Issue 1, November 2012, 7 p. The paper stresses the negative consequences of undeclared work, the categories of persons identified that working irregular and the types of intervention as to combat the problem.

Labour inspection in Europe: undeclared work, migration, trafficking/ International Labour Organization, 2010, 52 p. This report highlights some of the different labour inspection measures taken in law and practice by the EU countries.

Joining up in the fight against undeclared work in Europe/ Regioplan, December 2010, 286 p. The aim of the study is to provide the Commission with an independent analysis on the feasibility and added value of creating a European Platform for cooperation between labour inspectorates and other relevant monitoring and enforcement bodies to prevent and fight undeclared work.

Country approach

Tackling undeclared work in 27 EU Member States and Norway: Approaches and measures since 2008/  Williams, Colin C et al., Eurofound, June 2013, 44 p. This report analyses two findings: 1) the EU Member States and Norway adopt new measures to tackle the problem 2) the wider austerity measures influence the size of the undeclared economy.

Out of the Shadows: Explaining the Undeclared Economy in Baltic Countries/ Colin C. W., June 2013, 22 p. This article has revealed that 1 in 20 (5%) of the population in the Baltic region, and the EU more generally, admitted to conducting undeclared work during the last 12 months. However, no one perspective on its own can adequately explain the undeclared economy in Baltic countries.

Labour Inspection and employment relationship/ Bignami R. et al., International Labour Organization, 2013, 85 p. The report highlights both the reasons for undeclared work and the fact that Austria, France and Germany, established a single body to fight against undeclared work. However, in Belgium, in the Czech Republic, in Italy, in Lithuania, in Luxembourg, and in Slovenia, a central coordinating committee is responsible for ensuring coordinated action by the multifarious departments that have a stake in tackling undeclared work.

Tackling undeclared work in Croatia and four EU candidate countries/Colin C. W. et al., 2013, 44 p. This report provides a systematic overview of the extent and nature of undeclared work, and how it is being tackled, in Croatia and four EU candidate countries: Iceland, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro and Turkey.

Informal workers across Europe: Evidence from 30 Countries/ Hazans M., IZA DP No. 5871, July 2011, 44 p. The European Social Survey data are used to analyze informal employment in 30 countries. Overall, informality decreases from South to West to East to North. However, dependent work without contract is more prevalent in Eastern Europe than in the West, except for Ireland, the UK and Austria.

Tackling undeclared work: by country/ Eurofound, June 2013. In this web site you can choose the country as to see examples of policy measures that aim to tackle undeclared work.

Tackling undeclared work: developing an effective system for inspection and prevention/ Mutual learning Program. This web site provides discussion papers about the undeclared work in several European countries.

Stakeholders opinion

A strategy against the shadow economy and undeclared work, EESC procedure file SOC/480 with related documents

Consultation of Social Partners under Article 154 TFEU on undeclared work, Position paper, EuroCommerce and UNI Europa Commerce, 2 October 2013, 6 p.

UEAPME reply to the EC consultation of Social Partners on enhancing EU cooperation in the prevention and deterrence of undeclared work, Position paper, September 2013, 3 p.

Statistics

Undeclared work in the European Union/ EC, Eurobarometer, October 2007, 138 p. This survey provides data and figures about the undeclared work in the EU countries.

Statistical annex to the paper Towards a better understanding of the informal economy/ Economics department, Dan Andrews et al., Working papers No. 873, OECD, May 2011, 45 p. The statistical annex provides figures and tables about the undeclared work in the OECD countries.

Related legislative procedure(s)

Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions – Stepping up the fight against undeclared work /  2008/2035(INI), Procedure file, European Legislative Observatory.

Consultation of Social Partners under Article 154 TFEU on enhancing EU cooperation in the prevention and deterrence of undeclared work/ 4 July 2013, 9 p.

EU parliamentary questions

Increase in uninsured work in Greece, E-004906/13, Nikolaos Chountis (GUE/NGL), 2 May 2013.

Illegal work, E-000072/13, Antigoni Papadopoulou (S&D), 8 January 2013.

Measures to underpin economic recovery and sustainable welfare arrangements by combating undeclared work, E-007893/2012, Konstantinos Poupakis (PPE), 6 September 2012.

Labour inspectorates and CIBELES, E-007688/2012, Cornelis de Jong (GUE/NGL) and Sophia in ‘t Veld (ALDE), 22 August 2012.

Combating undeclared work: legal basis in the TFEU or elsewhere?, E-010260/2011, Morten Messerschmidt (EFD), 10 November 2011.

Fundamental rights,  E-007088/2012, Jens Rohde (ALDE), 16 July 2012.

Minimum wage and measures to promote employment, E-001750/2012, Konstantinos Poupakis (PPE), 13 February 2012.

Collapse of an apartment building in Barletta — safety at work and undeclared work in Italy, P-009244/2011, Sergio Gaetano Cofferati (S&D), 13 October 2011.

Illegal employment in the European Union, H-0525, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė (S&D), 5 October 2010.