Nonstandard Forms and Measures of Employment and Unemployment in Transition: A Comparative Study of Estonia, Romania, and Russia

J. David Brown, John Earle, Vladimir Gimpelson, Rostislav Kapeliushnikov (), Hartmut Lehmann (), Almos Telegdy, Irina Vantu (), Ruxandra Visan () and Alexandru Voicu
Additional contact information
Irina Vantu: Central European University, Budapest
Ruxandra Visan: Central European University, Budapest

No 1961, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Studies of transition economy labor markets have typically relied on standard, publicly available employment and unemployment statistics. This paper analyzes microdata on detailed labor force survey responses in Russia, Romania, and Estonia to measure nonstandard, boundary forms and alternative definitions of labor force status. Our estimates show that measured employment and unemployment rates are quite sensitive to definition, particularly in the treatment of household production (subsistence agriculture), unpaid family helpers, and discouraged workers; while the categories of part-time work and other forms of marginal attachment are still relatively unimportant. We find that tweaking the official definitions can produce alternative employment rates that are sharply higher in Russia but much lower in Romania and slightly lower in Estonia, and alternative unemployment rates that are sharply higher in Romania and moderately higher in Estonia and Russia.

Keywords: alternative measures of unemployment and employment; transitional economies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C81 J21 J64 P23 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 36 pages
Date: 2006-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-tra
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

Published - published in: Comparative Economic Studies, 2006, 48 (3), 435-457

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Related works:
Journal Article: Nonstandard Forms and Measures of Employment and Unemployment in Transition: A Comparative Study of Estonia, Romania, and Russia (2006)
Working Paper: Nonstandard Forms and Measures of Employment and Unemployment in Transition: A Comparative Study of Estonia, Romania, and Russia (2006)
Working Paper: Nonstandard Forms and Measures of Employment and Unemployment in Transition: A Comparative Study of Estonia, Romania, and Russia (2006)
Working Paper: Nonstandard Forms and Measures of Employment and Unemploymemnt in Transition: A Comparative Study of Estonia, Romania, and Russia
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