GENEVA (ILO News) - The "informal sector," a term which refers to the broad swathe of small, usually irregular and often makeshift jobs, now absorbs as much as 60% of the labour force in the cities and towns of the developing world and in many countries it is the only part of the economy creating any new jobs at all.

A gathering of trade unionists from 31 countries will be meeting at the ILO for five days in order to highlight the difficulties faced by informal-sector workers and develop strategies for organizing this marginalised but rapidly growing part of the world's workforce.

A background paper ⁽¹⁾ prepared for the meeting says that informal-sector activities, a term which can describe a welter of activities in commerce, agriculture, construction, manufacturing, transportation and services, accounts for the vast majority of the new jobs created in Latin America and in Africa during the present decade. In countries like Bolivia, Bangladesh, Colombia, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda the informal sector employment accounts for more than 50 % of total employment.

Most informal sector activity is concentrated in urban areas. The jobs it involves can range from street corner services (money changing, kiosk operators, window washers, etc.) to transport (rickshaw pullers, delivery men) to small manufacturing and construction (furniture making, wood carving, watch repairs).

They are part of a vast range of small-scale, income generating activities which take place outside the official regulatory framework and typically utilize a low level of capital, technology and skills, offering commensurately low levels of pay, little if any job security and often appalling working conditions.

"The informal sector reflects the survival strategy of the poor, those without steady jobs or incomes and without any form of social insurance" says Manuel Simon, Director of ILO's Bureau for Workers' Activities. "It is often the only recourse for workers left to fend for themselves."

The low productivity and income combined with the absence of social protection, training or social services is a particularly harsh burden on many of the most vulnerable groups in society, including women, children and migrants, who are disproportionately concentrated in the informal sector.

The ILO paper notes that "the informal sector does not exist in isolation from the formal sector". In fact, workers continually move in and out of formal or informal employment depending on such factors as the time of the year, the economic situation and the demands of the workers' survival strategy.

The trade unionists at the ILO meeting are expected to debate ways of upgrading the quality of jobs in the sector and organizing this large and potentially powerful workforce, which unions have traditionally overlooked for a number of reasons. Past neglect of informal sector workers is explained by a number of assumptions (i.e. that informal sector work was transitory by nature, that scarce resources were best deployed in trying to mobilize and maintain members in the modern economy and that self-employed workers were viewed as "entrepreneurs" and thus not potential trade union members) that are no longer so clear cut.

The expectation was that this type of activities would evaporate as economic development occurred. The last thirty years of history have demonstrated the fallacy of this assumption. The purpose of this meeting is to investigate ways by which Governments and policy makers can put into practice the promises they made about upgrading the quality of jobs in the sector. The trade unionists at the ILO will discuss more concrete policies for Governments in such areas as labour standards and labour legislation, macroeconomic and employment policy, training and human capital development, social protection and small enterprise development.

"Today the international trade union movement largely recognise and support the need for trade unions to reach out to these workers and campaign on their behalf". The ILO paper points out that in the last decade, many national trade union centres have started to re-examine and reform their perceptions and policies concerning the informal sector. A great deal of creativity has been demonstrated in trying to build bridges between the formal trade union movement and workers in the informal sector.

In light of these developments, the ILO meeting will also be reflecting upon a broad spectrum of topics including trade union strategies, priorities and resource allocation in respect of the informal sector. It is expected to come up with policy proposals for trade unions to meet the needs of informal sector workers and give them "a voice".

1. Trade unions and the informal sector: Towards a comprehensive strategy. International Labour Office, Geneva, 1999. ISBN 92-2-111791-X.