Is social protection to blame for informality?
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February 16, 2023
- Online
Date: Thursday, 16 February, 2023
Time: 10.00 Mexico City / 11.00 Eastern Time / 16.00 London / 17.00 Geneva
Duration: 90 minutes
Language: English and Spanish (interpretation available)
Despite the global recognition of the importance of social protection during the COVID-19 crisis and the momentum towards Universal Social Protection, substantial coverage gaps persist, particularly for the 2 billion informal workers worldwide who remain excluded. One possible reason for this slow progress is a set of policy ideas that hinder the expansion of social protection to informal workers.
One of the most influential policy ideas is the notion that certain forms of social protection cause significant increases in informality, presenting a challenge for governments looking to invest in social protection for informal workers. This claim has been outlined in numerous studies, including Santiago Levy’s 2008 book on Mexico’s social protection system and UNDP’s 2021 Regional Human Development Report for Latin America. These statements have real-world impacts, as they often become objections when new social protection programs are proposed. To critically examine these claims, WIEGO and the ILO have collaborated with a team of economists and social protection experts from Latin America, where the idea may have the greatest influence.
This webinar will present novel evidence on the claim that social protection is a key driver of informality and reflections from the ILO and the Inter-American Social Security Conference on the impact of these claims on social protection policy making and how they should be addressed towards universal social protection.