Estimation of the Size of Informal Employment Based on Administrative Records With Non-Ignorable Selection Mechanism

Abstract

Empirical research on the shadow economy is extremely difficult, given limited knowledge about the characteristics of informal workers. Most available data on informal employment come from surveys, which implies an underestimated level of the phenomenon, because respondents are not willing to report their informal activities. It has been assumed that survey-based studies of informal employment and the shadow economy indicate only the lower boundary of this phenomenon. Moreover, other