Special Report: The Latin American middle class (ISSN 17414474)

The issue of informal employment is probably more acute and problematic in Latin America than anywhere else. The ‘informal’ are defined as those who work outside the official tax and benefits system. Typically, they have no written contracts of employment, do not benefit from protected hours and conditions of work, and receive limited or non-existent social benefits. Being informal means that the employee is in a fragile position: he or she has little protection against sliding back into poverty.