The document explores informal employment (IE) and its relationship with health inequalities in the EU-27, analyzing data from 2005 and 2010. It finds that while the prevalence of IE decreased during economic downturns, informal workers did not have worse poor work-related health (PWRH) outcomes than formal workers, contradicting initial hypotheses. Recommendations include exploring mental health indicators and developing new measurement instruments for IE in public health contexts.

1. Informal employment related to health in the European Union
M. Julià1, G. Tarafa1,2, F.Belvis1, J. Benach1,2
1 Health Inequalities Reseach Group. Employment Conditions Network (GREDS-EMCONET). Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Barcelona
2 Transdisciplinary Research Group on Socioecological Transitions (GinTRANS2). Universidad Autónoma Madrid, Spain

2. Background, objectives and methods
• Background:
• Objectives:
 Informal employment (IE) scarcely studied in high income countries (our previous study)
 Relationship between IE and health or health inequalities is not studied
 To measure IE in EU-27 countries in 2005 and 2010
 To know social distribution of poor work-related health (PWRH)
 To analyse the association between IE and PWRH
• Methods:
 15-64 aged in the EU-27 from 2005 and 2010 EWCS
 Prevalence of IE and social distribution of PWRH
 Binomial logistic regression model

3. Results I
Prevalence of IE in EU-27 in 2005 and 2010.
Source: own elaboration

4. Results II
2005
2010
Occupational status
n (%)
OR
95% CI
n (%)
OR
95% CI
Men
Formals
Employee
9902 (74,6)
1
13838 (77,9)
1
Self-employed
715 (5,4)
1,43
(1,15-1,78)
912 (5,1)
1,22
(0,99-1,52)
Employer
378 (2,9)
0,61
(0,46-0,82)
406 (2,3)
0,86
(0,63-1,19)
Informals
Self-employed
930 (7,0)
0,99
(0,80-1,21)
1287 (7,2)
0,97
(0,81-1,17)
Employer
473 (3,6)
0,88
(0,69-1,14)
548 (3,1)
0,77
(0,59-1,01)
Employee
784 (5,9)
0,57
(0,45-0,71)
579 (3,3)
0,75
(0,58-0,98)
Family workers
85 (0,6)
1,01
(0,54-1,90)
187 (1,1)
1,16
(0,74-1,82)
Women
Formals
Employee
8475 (80,2)
1
12027 (82,5)
1
Self-employed
470 (4,4)
1,19
(0,89-1,59)
572 (3,9)
1,06
(0,80-1,38)
Employer
133 (1,3)
1,03
(0,64-1,64)
144 (1,0)
2,33
(1,42-3,82)
Informals
Self-employed
511 (4,8)
0,83
(0,63-1,10)
711 (4,9)
0,66
(0,52-0,85)
Employer
188 (1,8)
1,08
(0,69-1,67)
266 (1,8)
0,48
(0,31-0,75)
Employee
698 (6,6)
0,97
(0,76-1,22)
632 (4,3)
0,59
(0,45-0,78)
Family workers
95 (0,9)
2,2
(1,18-4,09)
219 (1,5)
0,58
(0,38-0,89)
Association between occupational status and poor work-related health. Men and women in 2005 and 2010.
Source: own elaboration
* Adjusted by age, occupation, education, country ,working hours, income, ambiental and ergonomic risks.

5. Conclusions
• During the economic downturn IE had decrease in most of countries
• Informal workers not worse PWRH
• Results (IE-PWRH) are contradictory with our initial hypothesis
• Recommendations:
 Others indicators: mental health
 New instruments to measure IE
 Definition of IE (to be measured for Public Health)
• Possible causes:
 PWRH is not the best indicator
 EWCS is not made to study IE. New instruments
 How to measure IE