The precariousness of informal employment in Mexico

Abstract

In order to identify processes of change in the working conditions of informal workers, twenty years of the National Survey of Occupation and Employment in Mexico were analyzed. Series that consider income, working time, benefits and other conditions were constructed, comparing current conditions with previous ones, as well as with those observed among the formally working population. The analysis leads to the recognition of a complex, heterogeneous labor market, where the formal/informal distinction is not sufficient. Although labor conditions in general have not changed in these twenty years for the informally working population, neither over time nor in comparison with the formally employed population, the analysis of the structure of the labor market leads to particular conclusions and discussions about the conceptual usefulness of the distinction, as well as the measurement of labor conditions in Mexico.