Informal work - family care, voluntary work, and undeclared or unregulated work - is a critical form of labor in today's economy, yet remains underanalyzed and examined. This volume develops a comprehensive conceptual framework of informal work and analyses systematically the relationship of formal and informal work. Using a coherent theoretical and methodological approach, this volume explores informal and formal work in six countries and contributes to our empirical knowledge of informal work and its different interrelations with formal work in various societies. A landmark study in the analysis of work, the book demonstrates how the relationship of formal and informal work is developing, how this can be explained in the specific context of the arrangement of work and welfare, and in which ways informal work possibly contributes to social integration and social cohesion.

Part I: Introduction to the Approach of the Book 1. The Development of Informal Work in the Work-Welfare Arrangements of European Societies Per H. Jensen, Birgit Pfau-Effinger & Lluís Flaquer 2. The Approach of the 'Arrangement of Work and Welfare' to the Cross-National Analysis of Formal and Informal Work Birgit Pfau-Effinger Part II: Formal and Informal Work in the Diverse Arrangements of Work and Welfare in European Societies 3. Formal and Informal Work in the Danish Social Democratic Welfare State Per H. Jensen & Jakob Rathlev 4. Formal and Informal Work in the Work-Welfare Arrangement of Finland Arja Jolkkonen, Riitta Kilpeläinen & Pertti Koistinen 5. Formal and Informal Work in the Work-Welfare Arrangement of Germany Birgit Pfau-Effinger & Sladana Sakac Magdalenic 6. Formal and Informal Work in a Liberal Regime - The Case of Britain Traute Meyer & Graham Baxendale 7. The Metamorphosis of Informal Work in Spain: Family Solidarity, Female Immigration and Development of Social Rights Lluís Flaquer & Anna Escobedo 8. Formal and Informal Work in a Transition Country: The Case of Poland Aleksander Surdej & Ewa Slezak Part III: Comparative Perspective 9. Formal and Informal Work in European Societies - A Comparative Perspective Birgit Pfau-Effinger, Per H. Jensen & Lluís Flaquer