Do Institutions Matter for Informal Employment in Jordan, Egypt and Tunisia?

The paper sheds light on the role of institutions, in addition to values and individual characteristics on the likelihood of being informally employed in Jordan, Egypt and Tunisia. Using the Labour Market Panel Surveys of the three countries, in addition to the World Value Survey and the World Governance Indicators, we examine determinants of informal employment. Our results show education and values play an important role in the decision to be informally employed. Moreover, institutions matter in the informality decision.