Nonstandard Forms and Measures of Employment and Unemployment in Transition: A Comparative Study of Estonia, Romania, and Russia

Authors

J. David Brown, Heriot-Watt UniversityFollow
John S. Earle, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research
Vladimir Gimpelson, CLMS, Higher School of Economics, IZA
R. I. Kapeliushnikov, CLMS, Higher School of EconomicsFollow
Hartmut Lehmann, University of BolognaFollow
Álmos Telegdy, Central European UniversityFollow
Irina Vantu, Central European University
Ruxandra Visan, Central European University
Alexandru Voicu, City University of New York, Staten Island College, IZA

Publication Date

9-1-2006

Source

Comparative Economic Studies 48(3): 435-457

Abstract

This paper looks behind the standard, publicly available labor force statistics relied upon in most studies of transition economy labor markets. We analyse microdata on detailed labor force survey (LFS) responses in Russia, Romania, and Estonia to measure nonstandard, boundary forms and alternative definitions of employment and unemployment. Our calculations show that measured rates are quite sensitive to definition, particularly in the treatment of household production (subsistence agriculture), unpaid family helpers, and discouraged workers, while the categories of part-time work and other forms of marginal attachment are still relatively unimportant. We find that tweaking the official definitions in apparently minor ways can produce alternative employment rates that are sharply higher in Russia but much lower in Romania and slightly lower in Estonia, and alternative unemployment rates that are sharply higher in Romania and moderately higher in Estonia and Russia.

DOI

10.1057/palgrave.ces.8100181

Publisher

Springer Nature

Subject Areas

LABOR MARKET ISSUES; Employment relationships; Nonstandard work arrangements; INTERNATIONAL ISSUES; International labor comparisons; Transition economies