Tackling Undeclared Work in Europe: Lessons from a Study of Ukraine

Abstract

This article reports a 2005—6 survey that displays the variety of undeclared work in Ukraine, involving not only an array of `off-the-books' employees but also various types of informal self-employment as well as forms of undeclared work more akin to mutual aid. Governments pursuing a conventional deterrent approach towards undeclared work may thus eradicate precisely the entrepreneurship and active citizenship that they otherwise seek to nurture. A more nuanced approach to tackling this sphere is proposed.